By Ken Afor
The Labour Party (LP) has called on the workers’ union to reconsider their approach and engage in constructive dialogue with the government, stating that the union’s demand for a N494,000 minimum wage is unrealistic.
Mr. Obiora Ifoh, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday, June 3, 2024.
Responding to the nationwide strike called by organised labour, Mr Ifoh said the industrial action would only exacerbate the already challenging situation, and advocated for a more collaborative and sustainable solution.
“Our immediate reaction is that the organised labour should not throw Nigerians into more hardship. Nigerians are already grappling with a lot of challenges, and we do not need to exacerbate the situation.
“I think the demand for a N494,000 minimum wage is unrealistic. It is really unrealistic.
“It is a figure that cannot be sustained because it will imply that Nigeria will take all its money to pay the civil servants,” Ifoh said.
He urged the labour union to continue negotiating with the Federal Government, to reach a mutually- agreeable figure, rather than insisting on a fixed demand.
“Negotiation should continue until they get something better.
“Asking Nigerian workers to stay at home will affect everything, including the cost of living, and Nigerians cannot afford that now.
“Negotiation is not a one-off thing. If the Federal Government is not willing to go above N60,000 minimum wage, I think the organised labour should work with what is available while it continues to negotiate.
“We know this government has not gotten it right. It is still trying to test the waters,” the LP spokesman said.
It would be recalled that last Tuesday, May 28, organised labour rejected the fresh N60,000 offer from the government after their initial demand of N497,000 and N494,000.
The labour union also rejected initial offers of ₦48,000 and ₦54,000 from the government.
Meanwhile, in response to government’s N60,000 offer, the President of the NLC, Mr. Joe Ajaero, described it as “insubstantial.”
He said: “It is still not substantial compared to what we need to make a family move forward,” referring to the union’s N615,000 initial demand, up from the current ₦30,000 wage paid to workers in the country.
“The economy of the workers is totally destroyed. In fact, the workers don’t have any economy. I think there are two economies in the country: the economy of the bourgeoisie and the economy of the workers. I think we have to harmonise this so that we can have a meeting point.”
