Minimum Wage: Labour Awaits Tinubu’s Decision On N62,000

Labour’s first reaction to the proposal on Friday was that of rejection with Trade Union Congress (TUC) President Festus Osifo insisting that the minimum acceptable to workers was N250,000.

The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) stated yesterday that President Bola Tinubu’s stance on the recently agreed N62,000 minimum wage between the Federal Government and the Organised Private Sector will influence Organised Labour’s subsequent steps regarding the issue.

President of NLC Joe Ajaero told The Nation that labour was awaiting the President’s response to the recommendation adopted at the Friday meeting of the Tripartite Committee on the new minimum wage in Abuja.

Labour’s first reaction to the proposal on Friday was that of rejection with Trade Union Congress (TUC) President Festus Osifo insisting that the minimum acceptable to workers was N250,000.

The NLC, in a separate statement yesterday, took a swipe at state governors for declaring that they lack the capacity to pay even the N60,000 earlier offered by the federal government.

The workers union said the stance of the governors was in bad taste and “an extreme bad news for the poor.”

The new figure of N62,000 was confirmed by Imo State Governor  Hope Uzodinma and TUC President Festus Osifo at the end of Friday’s meeting.

Emerging from the meeting of the Tripartite Committee, Governor Uzodimma said the panel would send its recommendation to President Tinubu for his approval.

He said the President would in turn forward an executive bill on a final figure as minimum wage to the National Assembly.

Contacted last night, Ajaero said he expected the President to make further consultation on the committee’s recommendation before taking a final decision on the minimum wage by way of an Executive Bill to be sent to the National Assembly.

“We’ll wait for the harmonisation of such consultation,” he said.

He recalled that in the build-up to the emergence of the existing N3,0000 minimum wage, a lower figure was recommended for the approval of then president who raised it to what was eventually sent to the legislature.