BARRING any last-minute agreement with government and the Organised Private Sector (OPS), the organised Labour might resume the industrial action it relaxed on Tuesday, June 4.
This indication was given on Monday, June 10, by the Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Mr. Chris Onyeka, during a television programme, saying Labour would reconvene to decide on the resumption of the suspended strike if the Federal Government and National Assembly failed to meet its demand on the proposed minimum wage by midnight on Tuesday, June11.
Recall that Nigerian workers, under the aegis of the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), suspended their strike for one week on Tuesday, June 4, just two days into the action, to resume negotiations with government and OPS on a new minimum wage.
That window expires at midnight on Tuesday.
During the last meeting held by the Tripartite Committee on New Minimum Wage on Friday, June 7, in Abuja, Labour reviewed its downward from N494,000 to N250,000, while the federal government increased its offer from N60,000 to N62,000, which the government team was to present to President Bola Tinubu for definite action.
But following the deadlock, Onyeka said the strike may resume if the leadership of the organised Labour sees it as the best option after the new government proposal of N62,000, noting: “The federal government and the National Assembly have the call now. Our demand is clear: the government must review it, send an Executive Bill to the National Assembly, and enact a National Minimum Wage Act that meets our expectations.
“If our demand is not met, the one-week notice we issued will expire tomorrow. If we do not receive a tangible response by then, the organs of organised Labour will meet to decide our next steps.”
He restated the Labour’s rejection of what he called “starvation wages,” such as N62,000 or N100,000, insisting that N250,000 remains Labour’s demand.
He stated: “We have never considered accepting N62,000 or any wage below a liveable standard. We will not negotiate a starvation wage. Our demand stands at N250,000, which we believe is a reasonable concession, considering the current economic realities and the cost of essential goods.”
