Labour union under the auspices of Trade Union Congress (TUC) has given the Federal Government a final deadline to fully implement the N30,000 new national minimum wage.
The Labour union also brought to notice that any reduction in the N30,000 agreed by the Tripartite Committee on the National Minimum Wage, as contained in the committee’s report to the President or any further delay in its passage will lead to devastating consequences.
The President of TUC, Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama and the Secretary-General of the Association of Senior Civil Servant of Nigeria (ASCSN), Comrade Bashir Lawal, gave the warning at the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the ASCSN, held at Chida Hotel in Abuja on Tuesday.
In his speech, Kaigama who is also the National President of ASCSN maintained that the expectation of labour is that the full implementation of the N30,000 new minimum wage should not exceed December.
Kaigama said
“The Federal Government is advised to avoid any action that can delay or truncate the process of enacting the new Minimum Wage as the consequences of allowing that to happen can be very devastating.
“Our expectation is that the Government should be able to complete the entire process before the end of this year so that workers who have waited for so long can begin to enjoy a new lease of life provided by the newly agreed minimum wage.”
Nairametrics had reported that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) suspended a nationwide strike, which was expected to take place November 6, 2018.
NLC President Ayuba Wabba disclosed this after an agreement was reached between the union, Government and the private sector over the new minimum wage.
Prior to This
President Muhammadu Buhari, in November last year, inaugurated the National Wage Committee led by former minister and Head of Service, Ama Pepple.
During the 40th anniversary of NLC in Abuja, the minister had stated that the new minimum wage would commence before the end of September, this year. He later backtracked, because the state governors were yet to submit their proposal on a new wage system.
In order to mount pressure on the Federal Government, the NLC gave a two-week ultimatum and then commenced a nationwide strike.
The minimum wage was last increased by the Goodluck Jonathan administration in 2011 from ₦7,500 to ₦18,000.
