FG Plans New Wage System Where Workers On Same Level Earns Different Salaries

The Federal Government on Monday, said it is planning a new wage system where workers on the same level could earn different salaries.

It said the new wage system will be based on employee’s productivity in the civil service.

The government said the formulation of an innovative wage system was being considered because it realised that productivity was a key factor in the growth of the country’s economy.

This was disclosed by the Director-General of the National Productivity Centre, Nasir Raji-Mustapha, during a meeting with Labour correspondents.

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He said: “We are in the process of developing a productivity-led wage system that will ensure that those who are productive are rewarded for their efforts, irrespective of their grade level. Under the proposed system, employees on the same salary scale can earn different wages.”

When asked whether the new proposal on a productivity-led wage system had the support and input of organised labour, the NPC boss stressed that such a task couldn’t be carried out without the input of labour.

Raji-Mustapha said, “Of course, labour, as a critical stakeholder, is being carried along in this exercise. As researchers, we don’t just do things without considering the recipient of the reports.

“When we started the project about three or four years ago, we held a stakeholders’ forum in which the labour unions participated. We even went further to send a memo to the NLC and TUC to ask them whether they will support the proposed wage system and they said they would welcome it.”

The report for the first phase of the study was ready according to Raji-Mustapha who added that the next stage would be to engage various stakeholders to consider and make inputs before finally presenting it to the Federal Government for its consideration and possible adoption.

The NPC boss also disclosed that the Centre was collaborating with several international agencies and organisations to ensure that the productivity and skills of Nigerian workers are greatly improved to impact positively on the economy.