The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has responded to the Southern Governors Forum's suggestion that states should independently determine their minimum wage rates.
The Southern Governors met in Abeokuta, Ogun state, to discuss this issue and issued a communique proposing that each state should negotiate its own minimum wage based on local cost of living and economic capacity.
In a statement by Benson Upah, the Head of Information and Public Affairs at NLC, the congress criticized this proposal, describing it as authoritarian and contrary to the national framework for establishing a minimum wage in Nigeria.
"The concept of a national minimum wage is not arbitrary but serves as a fundamental floor ensuring decent living standards for all workers. The governors' proposal undermines this principle and jeopardizes the welfare of Nigerian workers and the national economy," the statement read.
Upah highlighted the existing flexibility where states already determine pay structures tailored to their financial capabilities, contrasting it with the uniform salaries received by political office holders. The NLC called attention to what it perceives as a double standard favoring a few privileged individuals over the majority of citizens.
The statement also noted ongoing negotiations involving labour unions, the government, and the private sector concerning a new minimum wage. While the tripartite committee proposed N62,000, organised labour has advocated for N265,000. President Bola Tinubu has received the committee's report, pledging to consider what the nation can sustain financially and consulting stakeholders before presenting a bill to the National Assembly for a new minimum wage enactment.
No comments:
Post a Comment