At last, Council of State okays 2 new Minimum Wage for FG, States

…Federal to pay N30,000, States N27,000 . FG to transmit bill to NASS today …Labour kicks, says N27,000 for states shocking, unfortunate The National Council of State has approved two different new minimum wage for federal and state governments putting to rest the prolonged the argument over the new minimum wage. The Council in its meeting presided by President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, approved the sum of N27,000 for states and N30,000 for the Federal Government workers as the new monthly wage. Minister of Labour, Chris Ngige, who disclosed this to State House correspondents after the council meeting, said that the bill on the recommendation for the new salary benchmark will be transmitted to the National Assembly today, Wednesday, January 23, 2019. According to Ngige, organisations with less than 25 personnel have been exempted from paying the new minimum wage. The Labour minister asserted that the approved amount is subject to review after five years. He said: “The issue of national minimum wage as you are aware, we have had a series of consultations on the new national minimum wage starting from the inauguration of the tripartite committee in September, 2017 by Mr. President. “This committee was to handle all the issues surrounding the new minimum wage. It made use of laws, constitution, conventions on minimum wage fixing and specialist bodies like the National Bureau of Statistics, NISER and all other bodies that have to do with economic research. “The Federal Executive Council received the report. After a tortuous debate, at that level, treated it. The National Economic Council comprising the governors and the vice-president chairing, looked at the report and finally today, the council of state. These three organs have permitted Mr. President now to transmit to the National Assembly the new National Minimum Wage Bill. “Thus, in consonance with the fact that the issues of national minimum wage prescription is in the exclusive list, second schedule, item 34 and being on that list, it is not a job that can be done by the executive alone. The president has to transmit the bill to the National Assembly and the National Assembly will take legislative action and return the bill that has been so treated to the president for his assent. “So, a bill will now be transmitted to the National Assembly that will amend the 1981 Act and 2011 Act. The highlight is what you want to know. The figure of N27,000 monthly has been approved for transmission to the National Assembly. The frequency of the review of the bill is five years, to get it in consonance with pension law of the federation as enshrined in the constitution. “Exemptions to this bill will be establishments that are not employing people up to the number of 25. The various times prescribed have also been altered in the bill and will be sent to the National Assembly before the close of work tomorrow (today),” he stated. Recall that the Federal Government had offered to pay N24,000; states, N22,500 whereas the organised labour is demanding for N30,000. The Independent National Electoral Commission chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, also briefed the council on the readiness of the electoral body for the general elections. Ondo State govenor, Rotimi Akeredolu, told State House correspondents that everybody in the council was convinced that INEC was ready for the election. According to him, “the council was briefed by the INEC chairman and the briefing as accepted by everybody was lucid and clear. It was all encompassing. The INEC chairman took the council through all the processes that are going to be followed at the national and state elections. “In his briefing, he informed the council of the preparedness of INEC and everybody in the council was convinced that INEC was ready for this election. And a lot of things have been put in place and I think we all concluded that it is important for the chairman to even speak to the nation on the preparedness of INEC for this election. “That would convince all of us that this forthcoming election would be free and fair and then the way we see it. They have improved card readers, the details of what have been done to improve it was made known. It was made known that look, the process of continuous voting and accreditation system was the best so that when you are accredited, you vote at the same time and you leave. Akeredolu further stated that the INEC boss also informed the council on all the necessary ballot boxes and everything to be used and change in the ballot boxes. He said: “He also informed us that rather using collapsible ballot boxes, they are going to use framed ballot boxes, transparent ones because we have lost so many and a lot have been purchased. “He also told the council that they are not lacking in terms finance and that all the money appropriated have been given to them and they are ready for the election. And he went further to inform the council that all training and retraining of every category of staff that they will use have started and they are having consultations with every group of people, religious, artisans and trade unions and so on to let them know. “He has informed us that there is no way they are going to go out of the category of people they use for election when it comes to the issue of university vice chancellors, University students at times, and NYSC members. So, everybody was convinced. INEC as at today is ready for election and questions were put, he was interrogated and he respondent and gave adequate explanations to the satisfaction of every one of us. On the alarm raised by former President Olusegun Obasanjo that the electoral body may be partisan in the polls, he said: “Well, let me tell you, this point you made, the chairman of INEC without being specific made a point. And that point is what I want all of us not only in this hall but the whole of Nigeria that the success of election is not by INEC alone”. He said election will only be successful by the participation of every body and that whatever it may be,” we will must take politics out of the exercise. All of us owe a duty as leaders of our people at least, to be sure that we have confidence in the electoral body so, that at the end of the day, assist the electoral body to succeed”. Explaining further, he contended:” I think the message is very clear to everybody. I think that all of us in the hall have heard that look, whatever it is, we have now listened to the chairman of INEC and we are convinced that they are prepared for the election. “I am not sure any other person will come out to talk about INEC any longer. So, the point has been made, all of us now have our hands on deck to ensure the success. Because, without our participation, without our cooperation, INEC itself cannot be successful. On claims by the Federal Government that opposition elements are plotting to use Boko Haram insurgents and bandits to scuttle the forthcoming general elections, Governor Akeredolu said the matter was not up for discussion. “Seriously, there was no discussion on that. As we mentioned to you, what we received was briefing by INEC on how prepared they are for the election. So, their level of preparedness that was what we listened to. “There is no way INEC will come and tell us, they have information on what opposition is doing or what opposition is not doing but what INEC is doing is what was received and there was no discussion about that. I am not too sure that we have that fact,” he added. Former presidents, Olusegun Obasanjo, Goodluck Jonathan, ex-military head of state, Abdulsalami Abubakar, and Ernest Shonekan, former head of interim government, also attended the meeting. Others at the meeting were the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and former CJN, Mohammed Uwais. Also present were State governors from Osun, Kebbi, Zamfara, Plateau, Ebonyi, Adamawa, Edo, Lagos, Niger, Borno, Ogun, Ekiti, and Kogi. State deputy governors at the meeting were those from Bauchi, Kaduna and Rivers, Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, Head of Service, Winifred Oyo-Ita, National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, FCT Minister, Mohammed Bello and Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige also attended the meeting. Former Heads of State, Yakubu Gowon, Ibrahim Babangida and former CJN, Mariam Muktar, sent apologies for their absence at the meeting. Meanwhile, the United Labour Congress of Nigeria ( ULC) has rejected the proposed N27,000 minimum wage by Federal Government through the National Council of State which is contrary to the N30,000 agreed by the National Minimum Wage Tripartite Committee and which has since been submitted to the President. ULC rising from its just concluded Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting on Tuesday in Lagos, speaking through its president, Comrade Joe Ajaero, said: “The emerging news of the unfortunate decision of the Federal Government through the National Council of State to unilaterally propose N27,000 as the new National Minimum Wage is shocking and goes against the grain of all known traditions and practices of Industrial Relations especially as it concerns National Minimum Wage setting framework.” “We state that the National Council of State in a National Minimum Wage setting mechanism is an aberration. It is also important that we make it clear that the National Council of State does not have powers to approve, confirm, affirm or accept any figure as the new National Minimum Wage. What they have pretended to have done is therefore without any force of Law, standards or other known practices of Industrial Relations the world over.” “It is a mockery of the essence and principle behind the setting of a National Minimum Wage to attempt to segregate it between Federal Workers and State Workers. We want to state that workers are workers everywhere whether at the Federal Level or at the State Level. They all have the same challenges; go to the same market, same schools and much more they suffer the same fate. You cannot therefore pay them differently.” “Government’s attempt at this dichotomy is an effort at segregation and apartheid in nature. It is an attempt to put a sword within the trade union movement and to further the marginalisation of Private sector workers in Nigeria thus seek to weaken the trade union movement in the country.” “ULC saw this coming earlier in January and that was why we distanced ourselves. We will however in the next few days in consultation with other Labour Centres if they are still in the struggle for a just national minimum wage take steps to ensure that the interests of Nigerian workers as it concerns the National Minimum Wage are protected.” ULC urged the President to disregard the pronouncement of the National Council of State as it ridicules the statutes and principles governing the nation. “The only honourable path he should tread is to transmit the N30,000 figure as agreed by the Tripartite Committee and even the President on the day of submission of the Committees report. We will not accept the use of any cover of state to jettison the collective will of Nigerian workers and the trade union movement. “Once again, we remind the President that he promised Nigerian workers that he was going to transmit the N30,000 as agreed by the Tripartite committee, the National Assembly for passage into Law. He should not allow himself to be seen as a President who does not keep to his words. We hold him to that agreement and there is no other thing that would be acceptable to Nigerian workers except the N30,000 arrived at through the Tripartite process.” However, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) in a statement signed by the national President and General Secretary, Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama and Comrade Musa-Lawal Ozigi, said: “The Council State decision though advisory in nature is weighty and may give semblance of authority to the decision. This decision must not be allowed to stand because it will set a wrong precedence for the future: i.e, after statutory bodies have done their jobs, Council of State will now sit to review it.” “Let it be known that N30,000 minimum wage is a product of negotiation, not legislation, not advise and not a decree.” “Minimum wage issue therefore, is moving to a new theatre, the National Assembly. We expect the representative of the people if really they are to do the needful during the public hearing.” Mathew Dadiya, Abuja and Joy Obakeye, Lagos