NLC Kicks As Council Of State Approves N27,000 As Minimum Wage

• FG Adds N3,000; Makes it N30,000

The Federal Government has assured that it will add to the newly approved N27,000 minimum wage N3,000 to make up the N30,000 being agitated for by Nigerian Workers.

Minister of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Chris Ngige on Tuesday, after the National Council of State approved N27,000 as the new minimum wage for workers across the country.

The Minister said  the Federal Government is adding to the approved amount by N3,000 to 30,000 for its workers, adding that the states are at liberty to augment the new agreement as they see fit.

The amount approved by the Council of State is N3,000 short of the N30,000 that the Tripartite Committee on Review of National Minimum Wage recommended.

The committee, chaired by a former Head of Service of the Federation, Ms Ama Pepple, had submitted the report, which contained the recommended figure, to President Muhammadu Buhari on November 6, 2018, after many months of deliberations.

And expectedly, the Nigeria Labour Congress rejected the N27,000 adopted by the National Council of State.

Speaking through its General Secretary, Dr Peter Ozo-Eson, the council has no jurisdiction to determine another amount after a Tripartite Committee had submitted its report.

He said, “It is abysmal of government to be delaying the submission of an Executive Bill to the National Assembly and by wrongfully adopting N27,000 through the council of state.”

Ozo-Eson, however, said the NLC had called an emergency National Executive Council meeting for Friday to weigh on the deadline given to the government within which to submit an executive bill to the National Assembly.

The NLC general secretary added that the Federal Government was only projecting a shutdown of the economy with its latest action.

“This is because workers should not be held responsible for any development after its NEC meeting on Friday,” he said.

Also, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, has rejected a recommendation that the national monthly minimum wage be raised to N27,000 from N18,000, its spokesman, said on Tuesday

The TUC, which represents senior civil servants, said agreeing a minimum wage was a product of negotiations and that N30,000 had been agreed on and not N27,000.