Labour Gives States Dec 31 Deadline to Conclude Negotiations on Minimum Wage

Labour Gives States Dec 31 Deadline to Conclude Negotiations on Minimum Wage
  • Kaduna, Lagos, Kebbi, Adamawa begin implementation

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The organised labour has given state governments up till December 31, 2019 to conclude discussions on salary adjustments arising from the new national minimum wage or face industrial crisis.

This is coming as Kaduna, Lagos, Kebbi and Adamwa states have commenced the implementation of the new wage scheme.

In a communiqué issued last night and jointly signed by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba; General Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja; and National Chairperson, Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (Trade Union Side), Abdulrafiu Adeniji, the labour movement applauded the directives by the federal Government to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to pay minimum wage arrears by December 31.

It also commended states that have already commenced the implementation and payment of the new national minimum wage arising from negotiations with organised labour unions.

The communiqué was issued after a one-day stakeholders’ meeting involving leadership of the NLC, all the state chairpersons of NLC, chairpersons of Joint Negotiating Council (Trade Union Side) from the states, Minister of Labour and Employment, Heads of Service of states and the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

“States, which have not commenced discussion should quickly constitute a negotiating committee and expeditiously conclude discussions on salary adjustment consequent on the new national minimum wage on or before December 31, 2019; and in the event that any state fails to comply with these resolutions on or before December 31, 2019, organised labour would not guarantee industrial harmony in such states,” the communiqué explained.

The meeting also took stock of progress recorded so far in the minimum wage consequential adjustment talks in states

It categorised the status of the process at reaching a deal in three stages.

According to the communiqué, the states, which have commenced the implementation and payment of the new national minimum wage include Kaduna, Kebbi, Lagos, Adamawa and Jigawa states.

It however added that Jigawa had concluded negotiations but is yet to make its first payment to workers.

The communiqué identified another group of states, which have constituted a negotiating committee between their state governments and the labour on the consequential adjustment in salaries to include Borno, Abia, Kano, Bayelsa, Sokoto, Niger, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Edo, Ondo, Ebonyi, Katsina and Zamfara states.

The last group, which include those states that have not put in place a negotiating committee between the state government and the labour on the consequential adjustment of salaries are Bauchi, Yobe, Rivers, Benue, Gombe, Kwara, Imo, Osun, Ekiti, Oyo, Anambra, Taraba, Cross River, Ogun, Enugu, Nasarawa, Plateau, Kogi and Delta States.

The organised labour mandated each state chapters to immediately convoke an emergency state executive council meeting and state congress of all workers to brief them on the outcome of the stakeholders’ meeting on the new national minimum wage implementation.

It also directed the states, which are still on the discussion table to expedite discussions to conclude the negotiations on or before December 31.

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