The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called on the National Assembly (NASS) to expedite action on modalities for the coverage of the new national minimum wage.
The NLC President, Mr Joe Ajaero, said this at a book launch titled, “The Future of Work: Is the Tripartite Body in Africa Ready for Digital Economy?” written by a labour correspondent, Mrs Sharon Ijasan yesterday in Abuja.
On July 24, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, had said during a plenary session that the N70,000 new national minimum wage applied to all workers, including maids and other domestic staff.
Ajaero said there was a need for the National Assembly to come out clean on the area of coverage to the new minimum wage.
“There is a need for us to know the number of persons that the Minimum Wage Act covers.
“This means that until the National Assembly comes clean on this, there would be confusion. There is a need for an explanation on the number of people it covers because in every minimum wage, there are basic components.
“But up till now, they have not released the white paper to determine the number of persons that the minimum wage will cover,” he said.
He, however, said that by the pronouncement of the Senate President, the new minimum wage was not restricted to companies that employed over 25 people.
He said the NLC was waiting for the law itself to come out to quickly address the issues before the confusion would start.
“This means, if you have one gate man or maid, you pay him or her N70,000. So, that is the explanation I am asking,” he said.
On CNG buses, Ajaero said the NLC had received 15 CNG buses out of the 20 announced by the Federal Government.
He also expressed worry over the lack of CNG stations where the buses would refill.
While speaking about the book, he commended the author for a job well done, while urging other journalists to take a cue.
He, however, said the tripartite issues in Nigeria had been eroded as the government doubles as employer and regulator.
The author of the book, Ijasan, said the book was inspired by her wealth of experience from covering the labour beat for10 years.
According to Ijasan, looking at the theme of the lecture today, you will realise that the future of work is going towards the digital economy.
“Right now, we have a lot of cinematographers, we have people that do work from home.
“They spend a lot of money to ensure that this work is successful and also make money while they work from their homes.
“But imagine if you are in a typical office, the company is the one that is responsible for your welfare, your safety and so many other things.
“So, this is just to say that informal work is here, it has come to stay, especially after the advent of COVID-19,” she said.