Minimum Wage: NLC Rejects N22,500 Proposed by Governors

• Minimum Wage: NLC Rejects N22,500 Proposed by Governors

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected the new minimum wage proposed by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum on Tuesday, Mr. Ayuba Wabba said on Wednesday.

Mr. Ayuba Wabba, NLC president, said the N30,000 proposed by the organised labour was the amount agreed by the tripartite partners, which includes the governors, employers and organised labour. Therefore, NLC will not accept the proposed N22,500 as the new national minimum wage.

“The demand of organised labour is not N30, 000. Our initial demand is N66, 500. N30, 000 is the compromise figure arrived at the end of negotiations by the tripartite partners, which are the governors, employers and organised labour.”

According to him, before the N30,000 was agreed, a total of 21 states sent in memorandum quoting figures, meaning the outcoming was a product of intense negotiation that lasted for almost one year.

“We wish to reiterate our position adopted at our National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Oct. 23 that any figure below N30, 000 will not be accepted by us.”

“We call on our members to continue to mobilise in preparation for the commencement of an indefinite strike on Nov. 6, if by then necessary steps are not taken to adopt the recommendation of the Tripartite Committee,” Wabba said.

He further said governors had six representatives on the tripartite committee, one from each geo-political zones, that negotiates and agreed to the N30,000 minimum wage proposed by the committee.

“It is important to note that the National Minimum Wage is not an allocation to workers but a product of negotiation by the tripartite partners,” he added.

On Tuesday, Peter Gambo, NLC Chairman in Taraba, said based on their analysis, Nigerian workers earn the lowest pay in Africa. This, according to Gambo, they hope to regularise this time.