MINIMUM WAGE: Crisis ahead as governors shoot down N60,000

..Amount not sustainable with our monthly allocations -NGF

BY ORIAKU IJELE

Indications are rife that more labour crises may ensue in the coming days over minimum wage issues, following the outright rejection of the proposed N60,000 by the 36 state governors.

Operating under the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, the governors have said that the N60,000 minimum wage proposed by the Federal Government is not sustainable and cannot fly.

Mrs Halima Ahmed, the Acting Director, Media Affairs and Public Relations of the Forum, hinted that if allowed to fly, many states will use all their monthly allocations from the federation account to pay workers’ salaries only without any other meaningful development.

The governors therefore appealed to members of the tripartite committee to agree on a minimum wage that would be fair and sustainable.

The statement reads: “The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) is in agreement that a new minimum wage is due. The Forum also sympathises with labour unions in their push for higher wages.

“However, the Forum urges all parties to consider the fact that the minimum wage negotiations also involve consequential adjustments across all cadres, including pensioners.

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“The NGF cautions parties in this important discussion to look beyond just signing a document for the sake of it; any agreement to be signed should be sustainable and realistic.

“All things considered, the NGF holds that the N60,000 minimum wage proposal is not sustainable and cannot fly. It will simply mean that many states will spend all their FAAC allocations on just paying salaries with nothing left for development purposes.

“In fact, a few states will end up borrowing to pay workers every month. We do not think this will be in the country’s collective interest, including workers.

“We appeal that all parties involved, especially the labour unions, consider all the socioeconomic variables and settle for an agreement that is sustainable, durable, and fair to all other segments of the society who have a legitimate claim to public resources,” the statement read.

Meanwhile the Federal Government said it has offered organised labour N62, 000 as the new national minimum wage for workers in the country.

Gov. Hope Uzodimma of Imo state said this while addressing journalists at at end Tripartite Committee negotiation meeting on Friday in Abuja.

Uzodimma who is also the Chairman of Governor Forum, spoke on behalf of the governors that there was progress in the negotiation of the new minimum wage.

According to him, we are almost there because are just about to sign the dot and there will be a complete closure. Every other thing will follow.

“The committee has worked so hard and the committee has reach an agreement. The tripartite committee is made up of three parties -the government, the Organised Private Sector(OPS) and the organised labour.

“In the wisdom of the committee, it has put together a recommendation that will be forwarded to Mr President for further action

“The organised private sector and the Federal Government have agreed on N62, 000 while the organised labour is asking for N250, 000.

“At the end of the day what is important is that we are talking. There is no hostility anymore. And the national anxiety is going to be relaxed as soon as this is made public,” he said.

Also, Festus Osifo, President, Trade Union Congress (TUC) noted that the OPS and Federal Government have recommended N62, 000 as the minimum wage.

“But for us we felt that with the current economic hardship and the difficulty in the land the sum of N250, 000 should be what will be okay for the minimum wage.

“We are going to sign a report and forward this position to Mr President. This committee is to make recommendation to him.

”So we will forward it to him and Mr President will forward it to the National Assembly.

“We will keep pushing to ensure that we have a wage that stands the test of time in Nigeria,” he said.

Speaking, Mr Goni Aji, Chairman of the Tripartite Committee on the National Minimum Wage, said the recommendation that they had was as a result of a deep dialogue and consensus reached at the Tripartite level.

According to him, the situation that we are recommending to Mr President, somehow, is repeating itself because it happened in the 2018 exercise.

“In 2018, it was the other way. The organised private sector and the organised labour recommended N30, 000 as minimum wage while the government side recommended N24, 000.

“Two figures were recommended to the then President for his consideration and onward transmission to the National Assembly for it to become a law. That is exactly where we are,” he said.

He added that the mandate of the tripartite committee is to recommend. It has no powers to approve but to recommend.

He said that the recommendation reached came as a result of deeper understanding and studies of all the economic indices and current inflation, state of the economy

He noted that the organised private sector and the government have aggressive on a figure which N62,000 while the organised labour is asking for N250.000.

“At the end of the day what is important is that we are still talking,” he said.