… N54,000 falls short of what Nigerians should be paid – TUC
Organised Labour has on Tuesday rejected the N54,000 proposed by the Federal government as new minimum wage.
FG had in a meeting with Labour proposed N54,000 as against its earlier N48,000 offer. One of the leaders of the Organised Labour who attended the meeting revealed this to Vanguard in a telephone conversation.
Recall that Organised Labour comprising of the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress, walked out on the Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage following the proposed N48,000 as minimum wage by the Federal Government.
Last week Organised Labour told FG to perish any thought of offering N100,000 as the new minimum wage.
It also asked the government to be serious with negotiations on the issue of workers’ wages, insisting that it used the lowest minimum in arriving at N615,000 as the new minimum wage.
Meanwhile, the NLC said the N54, 000 proposed minimum wage by the Federal Government is not substantial enough to keep a family moving.
The President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, stated this in a television interview.
He said, “You can see that (₦54k) is still not substantial compared to what you need to keep a family moving.
“Organised Labour refused the new proposal, as it is a far cry from the ₦615,000 proposed by both the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC).”
Recall that at the reconvened meeting this week, the Federal Government made a fresh proposal to pay N54,000 as against the initial N48,000 it proposed during the last sitting.
But, the Organised Labour refused the new proposal, as it is a far cry from the N615,000 proposed by both the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
According to a report, the meeting which was held behind closed doors at the Nicon luxury hotel in Abuja on Tuesday has been adjourned to Wednesday, May 22 to continue with negotiations.
The Organised Labour comprising the NLC and the TUC had on Tuesday given the Federal Government up till the end of May to conclude negotiations for a new minimum wage.
The unions also directed their members in states that are owing the N30,000 minimum wage to gear up for industrial action.
The Federal Government had failed to present a nationally acceptable minimum wage to Nigerians before the May 1 Labour Day.
The situation has forced labour to be at loggerheads with the government. In the wake of the tussle, Ajaero insisted on the N615,000 minimum wage.
Ajaero said the amount was arrived at after an analysis of the economic situation worsened by the hike in the cost of living and the needs of an average Nigerian family of six.
With the cost of living rising following the removal of fuel subsidy, calls for a new minimum wage have continued to make headlines in Nigeria.
Ajaero and labour leaders gave the Federal Government a May 31 deadline to meet their demands.
N54,000 falls short of what Nigerians should be paid – TUC
The Trade Union Congress, TUC, said the proposed N54, 000 by the Federal Government falls short of what Nigeria should be paying.
The President of TUC, Festus Osifo stated this in an interview with Arise Television.
Recall that the Federal Government had previously proposed the sum of N48,000 for minimum wage.
This was rejected by the trade union because it was “ridiculous,” leading to a meeting on Tuesday for a new proposal where the sum of N54,000 was suggested.
Speaking on the development, Osifo said the Tuesday meeting was held with the expectation that the proposal will be “something reasonable.”
He said the N615,000 was a negotiation strategy by the union, saying that “you don’t go into negotiation with your barest minimum, after looking at all factors then you add markup to it so you have room for adjustment. The N615,000 submitted was a strategy.”
Osifo highlighted the remarkable difference between the minimum wage of 18,000 naira in 2011, and the suggested 54,000 naira in 2024, using the value of dollar and consumer purchasing power.
He said, “2011 when N18,000 was passed as the minimum wage, what was the value of USD? In 2011, N18,000 using an exchange rate of about 140-145 will give you about $125, which when converted today will get you close to N200,000.
“What that means is what N18,000 could buy in 2011 you will need almost N200,000 to buy it today.”
Osifo said one of the reasons the meeting held today made no progress and was rescheduled, was due to the absence of the 6 state governors, and lack of mandate by 2 who were represented.
“We asked them if they had any mandate and they said no, so we adjourned the meeting to 4pm on Wednesday,” he said.
He urged the governors to be present for the meeting on Wednesday and recognise that they “are not here to play and the Nigerians workers are waiting for the outcome of this conversation”.
Osifo said regardless of the presence of the governors at the meeting tomorrow, “as long as the federal government is seated we are going to move forward but not with the N54,000 they have presented to us.”
