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We’ll Reject Meagre Addition To 60K Minimum Wage – Labour Vows
Few hours after the Organised Labour, comprising the TUC and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), suspended its industrial action that began at 12:01am on Monday, the union vowed to reject any minor addition to the N60,000 offer by the tripartite committee on the new minimum wage.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Organised Labour relaxed its nationwide strike, which started at midnight on Monday, after the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, said President Bola Tinubu was committed to a national minimum wage above N60,000.
The President also directed the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, to present a template for a new minimum wage by Wednesday.
The President of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, stated this on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme on Tuesday.
At the meeting on Friday, they (the tripartite committee) said they would not add anything more to the N60,000. In the meeting yesterday (Monday), Mr. President said he is able to commit to doing more than N60,000,” Osifo said.
TUC President Festus Osifo said Labour never wanted to go on strike, but their hands were forced. He also stated that the meeting with the government yesterday achieved two items: an increase in the FG’s N60,000 proposal and a week for execution.
Before the strike, the tripartite committee, which includes the Federal Government, states, and the Organised Private Sector, offered Labour N48,000, then N54,000, then N57,000, and later N60,000, all of which were rejected by the TUC and NLC.
When asked whether Labour would accept a few thousand naira additions to the last offer of the tripartite committee, the TUC boss said, “No, we also told them that it’s not that we’d get to the table and you start adding N1, N2, N3,000 as you were doing, and we got some good guarantees here and there that they would do something good.”
Osifo said the Organised Labour is not fixated on N494,000 as the new minimum wage for workers in the country, but the tripartite committee must show seriousness and offer workers something economically realistic in line with current inflationary pressures.
Though the union leader refused to mention a specific amount, he said the new minimum wage must be equal in purchasing power to the value of ₦30,000 in 2019 and ₦18,000 in 2014.
Osifo faulted the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, for describing the industrial action by Labour as “premature” and “illegal.”
TUC boss argued that during this year’s Workers’ Day on May 1, 2024, the Organised Labour gave the government a one-month notice which ended on May 31, 2024.
The TUC leader said the little-over-24-hour strike achieved Labour’s aim as it has awakened everyone in the country to the demands of workers.
“When it comes to the issue of Labour, it should be taken much more seriously. The attention should be there.
“What has this strike achieved today? This strike has awakened everybody. I can tell you that between now and the next week, the entire attention is going to be on the tripartite committee.
That was actually what we were trying to achieve and we have achieved that,” he said.
