With everyone waiting for Nigeria’s new minimum wage, this announcement hoped to be made on May 1st. may be delayed.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja, the TUC President Festus Osifo said that the issue is still being discussed by the Tripartite Committee which is responsible for setting the new minimum wage.
The initial demand of TUC was N447,000; however, after reconciling figures with NLC, it was agreed that N615,000 should be paid as minimum wage. But even though this agreement has been reached already but when exactly it will be announced is still not known.
Mr. Osifo noted that May Day will not be the date for unveiling the new minimum wage except if FG agrees to pay N500k as minimum wage.
According him, both sides need to sit down and talk because labour’s demand of N615k is not cast on stone; they know that there must be give and take.
GistReporters.com gathered that to understand what proposed N615k means in real sense, we need to look at it against economic background – computation was done when exchange rate was about N1,700 per dollar so although figure seems big but this takes into account inflation realities and fluctuation of currency too.
The Federal Government’s 37 members tripartite committee plays an integral part in the creation of the new minimum wage. Former Head of Civil Service of the Federation Bukar Aji chairs it; this includes representatives from the federal and state governments, the private sector, and organized labor. Their job is to navigate between workers’ rights and economic sustainability.
Vice President, Kashim Shettima, who highlighted the significance of this review committee for minimum wages, called it a recommitment by President Bola Tinubu towards empowering Nigerian workers — the engine room of any administration.
Vice President Shettima admitting that there might be immediate challenges, but assured citizens that there are better days ahead.
He also urged the committee to carry out a thorough and wide consultations as they perform their duties.
He urged them to work hard since it should result into a reasonable income that will relieve average citizens from heavy taxes thus making life easier for them. In all these important talks about people’s lives must come first.
Follow Us
