- FG Shifts Ground, Now Committed to A minimum Wage Above N60,000
By Tolúlopé Olátúnjí
In the wake of an ongoing nationwide strike declared by organized labour, key resolutions were reportedly reached during a closed-door meeting on Monday between the Federal Government and labour leaders, according to the Federal government.
The meeting, held at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief George Akume was said to have resulted in a resolution statement signed by Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President, Joe Ajaero, and Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Festus Osifo.
It would be recalled that organized Labour had called the strike to press for a higher national minimum wage, after a Tripartite Committee on National Minimum Wage (NMW) negotiations deliberations ended in deadlock. This led to the intervention of National Assembly leaders on June 2, 2024.
In response to the strike, the Federal Government convened a meeting with labour representatives at the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
After extensive discussions, both parties reportedly arrived at the following resolutions. One, that both FG and labour agreed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is committed to a national minimum wage higher than N60,000.
Two, accordingly, the Tripartite Committee will meet daily for the next week to finalize an agreeable national minimum wage. However the Labour leaders, in deference to the President’s commitment, will convene a meeting of their organs to consider this commitment.
According to reports, It was agreed that no worker will be victimized as a result of their participation in the industrial action.
To many analysts, these resolutions mark a significant step towards resolving the dispute and addressing the demands of the labour unions.
