Nigeria: The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has rejected the suggestion by governors that they should be allowed to determine the wages of their workers and said that it is not only dictatorial but is against the concept of the minimum wage.
Reportedly, the Southern Governors Forum conducted a meeting that was held in Abeokuta in a communique and at the end of the meeting on Thursday, Ogun state capital advocated that each state should be allowed to negotiate what it could pay with labour.
However, the Forum then argued that the minimum wage should be reflective of the cost of living and that each state should be allowed to negotiate its minimum wage.
The 36 states of the Federation, under the Nigerian Governor’s Forum has promised of their part to remain dedicated to the process and assured that better wages would result from the recent negotiations.
Reacting to the position of the Southern Governor’s Forum, NLC warned the state governors against further inflammatory statements concerning the minimum wage to avoid provoking industrial unrest.
Head of NLC’s Information and Public Affairs – Benson Upah stated that it may no longer be able to withstand the pressure for industrial action should be the minimum wage issue and continue to be prolonged.
NLC then urged President of Nigeria Bola Tinubu who promised a living wage, which is superior to a minimum wage and did not allow himself to be blackmailed or boxed into a corner by unpatriotic governors.
As per a statement, “NLC is compelled to address the recent statements that were made by some Nigerian Governors regarding their desire to pay what they deem fit to Nigerian workers as the minimum wage.”
“This notion is not only dictatorial but also considered the very essence of the model adopted for creating a national minimum wage in Nigeria. The concept of a national minimum wage is not arbitrary. It represents a national wage floor a baseline below which no worker in the law should be paid,” according to the statement.
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