From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye and Adanna Nnamani, Abuja
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said the Federal Government’s delay in approving a new national minimum wage reflects a lack of preparedness and seriousness.
Spokesperson of the NLC, Mr Benson Upah, stated this in a phone conversation with Daily Sun yesterday.
On Tuesday, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had stepped down the memorandum on the report of the Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage to allow for more consultations between President Bola Tinubu, state governors, local government authorities and the private sector.
This is coming more than two weeks after the committee submitted its recommendations to the president for onward review and approval.
It was gathered that the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) had planned to hold an emergency meeting over the decision of the FEC to suspend the memo, but later postponed it.
Upah, who refused to give more details on the motive behind the emergency meeting by the labour unions, emphasised that the government’s procrastination in finalising the national minimum wage reflected a lack of seriousness.
He expressed doubt that the ongoing back-and-forth between the government and the stakeholders would facilitate a timely resolution.
He pointed out that the process, which included extensive consultations across the country, had been ongoing for a significant period, yet the government only now seems to be considering consultations with the key stakeholders, such as the private sector and the governors.
“We had a time frame for the process of realising the national minimum wage, and one of the items on that time frame was consultations, and the consultations were not limited to the parties in the committee, but extended to the entire country.
“So, we find it curious that it is at the time of making a final pronouncement on which figure to take that the government will wake up and start thinking and talking about consultations. What have they been doing all this while? What did we do when we went to all the zones?
“Clearly, there is a lack of preparation, yet this is a four-yearly cycle thing and the government was expected to have prepared. So, this back and forth will not help the process, and then we heard that the government is going to consult with the private sector and the governors. They are not talking or consulting with us. So, what does that mean?”
At press time, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) was in a meeting to address ongoing debate surrounding the new minimum wage proposal and local government autonomy.
The governors recently expressed concerns about the Federal Government’s proposed N62,000 minimum wage, warning that it is unsustainable.
They argued that implementing such a wage would result in many states allocating their entire monthly federation account disbursements solely to salary payments.
They had, therefore, urged the tripartite committee to agree on a fair and sustainable minimum wage.
In response to these concerns, the Federal Government had announced on Tuesday that President Bola Tinubu would engage in further consultations before reaching a decision on the new minimum wage.
Another key item on the agenda is the unresolved issue of local government autonomy.
The governors are also set to deliberate on other critical matters of national importance, covering a wide range of pressing issues that impact the country’s socio-economic and political landscape.
This aims to foster collaborative solutions and develop strategic initiatives to address Nigeria’s challenges, with the goal of ensuring a unified and effective approach to governance.
