Good News! Buhari Set To Increase Minimum Wage

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari
might increase the minimum wage of
Nigerian workers as the Federal Government
delegation will meet with the leadership of
the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and
Trade Union Congress (TUC) over
deliberation on the issue.
According to a report by Daily Times, the
meeting which will initiate modalities that
will guide negotiations for the new N56,000
minimum wage, proposed by the Worker
Union.
The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba,
confirming the proposed talks scheduled for
today, described the renewed negotiation,
as a step in the right direction.
“We have submitted that demand. As I
speak with you, the negotiation committee
has not even taken off, but what I was
informed two days ago, is that the process
has been ongoing at different levels,
because there are various people driving
the process.”
“Based on his submission, the Labour
leaders met on Monday, October 31st, to
finalize their position, preparatory to their
meeting with the government team today.
“They will then meet with the government
side tomorrow (Tuesday). They want to tidy
up the report, including the membership of
the team, that is supposed to negotiate the
minimum wage,” Wabba said.
While lamenting that the sitting of the
committee had dragged for too long, and
that a lot of time had been lost in the
process; further compounding the situation,
Wabba disclosed that, “Workers are on
daily basis being exposed (to high cost of
living), and the purchasing power is going
down, especially with the issue of the
exchange rate.”
He added: “They will be meeting tomorrow
(Tuesday), and they are also trying to
round off, because they said they wanted
the report to then go to the Presidency for
formal approval, because at the end of the
day, the President must be involved. I want
to assure you that we have not relented,”he
said.
The present N18,000 minimum wage, was
signed into law, in March 2011, by former
President, Goodluck Jonathan, thus putting
an end to three years of prolonged
negotiations, protests, strike, and threats
between the government and the organised
Labour.