Workers Day: ULC to battle NASS over minimum wage
President of the United Labour Congress of Nigeria, (ULC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, has condemned actions of the National Assembly to move the minimum wage from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent list, insisting that the move would fail, as Labour is prepared to battle the lawmakers to a standstill.
Comrade Ajaero made this known at a seminar tagged, ‘Worker’s In a Recessionary Economy’, organised by the United Labour Congress to celebrate the 2017 May Day in Lagos.
According to Ajaero, “the move is ill-motivated to deny workers their right to live well, which is what some of the governors have been advocating; but we will mobilise against them”.
He said that If the planned delisting of wage from the exclusive legislative list succeeds, it means that the country would no longer have a national minimum wage.
“It means that each state of the federation will be empowered to legislate and arrive at what should be their respective minimum,’’ he said.
The ULC leader recalls that the current minimum wage of N18,000 was signed into effect in 2011, by former President Goodluck Johnathan, subject to a review every five years.
He said that labour since 2016, had been agitating for the review of the wage citing hyper-inflation and the devaluation of the Naira which had continued to impact negatively on workers’ take-home pay.
He said that workers not only deserved wage increase, but better welfare package in both the public and private sector.
Ajaero said that the national economy was wobbling not because Nigeria as a nation was poor, but because of deep rooted corruption.
“’This is why as a labour movement, we need to be in the streets to insist that working condition of the people must be improved.
Ajaero however said the Congress was prepared to collaborate with other progressive forces to ensure that government at all levels work for the people of Nigeria and not political office holders and their cronies.
Speaking on the topic-The Role of Trade Unions in A Recessionary Economy, The Founder, Chief Executive Officer, Centre for Values in Leadership, Professor Pat Utomi said “I believe that the recession did not suddenly drop on us, we all saw it coming and through error of omission or otherwise, allowed the avoidable damage to hit our economy.”
“The impunity that was unleashed on the economy has workers as eye witnesses in the various establishments where public funds were looted but no alarm was raised until politicians started their intra and inter party battles.”
Prof. Utomi who was represented by Comrade Adegbenro Rasheed, the Vice President, Centre for Value in Leadership stressed that, “It is either the workers have lost confidence in the leadership of respective trade unions and therefore maintained a golden silence or there is so much distance between workers and union leaders to the point that workers now respect politicians more than union leaders.
“In addressing this subject, it is pertinent to examine where we are coming from; what were the milestones in times past; where we are today; and what does the society that we claim so much to represent, expect from us.
“There is no doubt that the trade unions played very effective role in Nigeria’s independence struggle. In the 1940s-1950s, before the advent of political associations, there were just two windows available for Nigerians to express their strong resentment of colonial rule. In fact you are first a trade unionist or a journalist before you become a politician.”
However, Professor Funmi Adewunmi, a guest lecturer said that part of the measures required to take the economy out of recession was increased production.
Prof. Adewunmi said that this was in addition to exportation of goods and services that would enable the country earn foreign exchange.
He further stressed that, there was the need for the government to cut down on costs of governance by streaming certain agencies and parastatals of government which do not add value to the national economy.
