Labour maps out plans for sustainable minimum wage for working class

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba, has explained how the new minimum wage would be negotiated.

According to him, it was crucial because N50, 400 being the current exchange rate value of $140 at 360 to the dollar. He said: “We think that it is only reasonable to demand a wage that can sustain the working class. We are aware that the value of our national currency has gone down. This is why it is appropriate to base our negotiation on that.”

He disclosed that $140, which was the equivalent of N18, 000 minimum wage in 2011, would be used in the process. Wabba spoke at the 60th anniversary of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA).

‎Also, NECA President, Larry Ettah, said the crowding out of the private sector has affected employment and discouraged entrepreneurship and wealth creation. He stressed that access to credit has also been hampered, as government seeks funds to cover budgetary deficits, which has led to the emergence of a rent-seeking economy.

He also identified high interest rate as the bane of doing business in Nigeria, saying, “The current dispensation of high interest rate is clearly negative to growth and development.

“Our concern here is the need for managers of our economy to appreciate that high interest rate is antithetical to growth and must be backed by sound fiscal and monetary policies to bring it down to single digit.”

However, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udo Udoma explained that the cumbersome regulatory framework had slowed down the privatisation process. Udoma explained that the newly launched Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) is conceived to drive revival of the economy revival and put the country on the path of sustainable growth.

Joy Ekeke