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Tag: minimum wage

  • Minimum wage will determine workers’ voting pattern in 2019 elections – NLC

    The National Minimum Wage will determine the voting pattern by Nigerian workers in the 2019 general elections, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said.

    Its General Secretary, Dr Peter Ozo-Eson, spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.

    Ozo-Eson said that this was due to the delay by President Muhammadu Buhari to transmit an Executive Bill on the agreed N30, 000 National Minimum Wage to the National Assembly to kick-start its implementation.

    “I want to say that if this is not addressed now, the minimum wage issue will become the major determinant of the 2019 General Elections.

    “I think the government must ensure that it quickly takes this matter up on the table so that it does not get mixed up with the forthcoming general elections in the country,’’ he said.

    Ozo-Eson said that it was already more than a month since the Ama Pepple-led Tripartite Committee submitted its recommendation of N30, 000 report to the president.

    “We are already more than three weeks gone, since the submission of that recommendation of the tripartite committee to Mr President.

    “Mr President had promised at the occasion that he will act quickly on it.

    “We are disturbed that up till now he has not sent the bill to the National Assembly.

    “Therefore, our advice to workers is that those in government who have shown no interest in the welfare of workers, or have unleashed terror on workers, should be voted out.

    “We urge our members to use their voting powers to vote such people out,” he said.

    The NLC scribe recalled that the minimum wage had been due for review for more than two years.

    He said though, the union understood the current economic challenges of the country, government could have still done better if they have the interest of workers at heart.

    Ozo-Eson said that though, the political parties have started their campaign, the National Assembly had assured workers that legislators would attend to bills of national importance.

    He also said that the National Assembly members had specifically promised that they would give accelerated hearing if the bill on the minimum wage reached them.

  • Minimum wage: Reps demand Tripartite agreement report from Pres. Buhari

    By Gabriel Okoro, Abuja

    The House of Representatives has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to transmit the Tripartite Agreement on National Minimum Wage to the National Assembly for legislation, to avert the looming industrial action
    threatened by organized labour, with the potential of paralyzing the nation’s socio-economic and political activities- and its attendant costs.

    The green chamber also advised the Federal Government to henceforth display good faith in implementing
    the age-old agreement mutually reached between it and Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) so as to check the union’s incessant strikes as it’s only weapon of compelling governnent to the negotiating, table all of the time.
    The resolution emanated from a motion raised under matters of urgent national importance of Wednesday’s plenary by Mr. Mohammed Zorro (APC, Jigawa).
    Speaking to members on the floor, Mr. Zorro who says he is alarmed by threats of industrial action by organized labour in the face of the stalemate caused
    by the failure to facilitate the due process, called for appropriate resolution of the dispute.
    Meanwhile, the House further resolved to constitute an ad-hoc committee with the Senate to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the industrial action threat by the Parliamentary Staff Association of the National Assembly that distrupted legislative activities on Tuesday.
    The ad-hoc committee is expected to make appropriate recommendations to both chambers to proffer permanent solutions to the industrial action.
  • Increment in minimum wage will stimulate economic growth – CBN

    Increment in minimum wage will stimulate economic growth – CBN

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday said the proposed increase in minimum wage for Nigerian workers would stimulate output growth in the economy.

    Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, made this known in a communique published at the end of the 264th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria in Abuja.

    According to the communique, the MPC welcomed the moderation in inflation in October which according to the committee reflected declining food prices.

    The committee added that it believes that given the negative output gap, “the proposed increase in the national minimum wage would stimulate output growth due to prolonged weak aggregate demand arising from salary arrears and contractor debt”.

    “Consequently,” the communique said, “its impact on the aggregate price level would be largely muted, given that the monetary aggregates have largely underperformed in fiscal 2018.”

    In addition, the MPC said the prevailing stability in the foreign exchange market would continue to moderate pressures on the domestic price level.

    The Nigerian government and labour unions have been at loggerheads over the issue of minimum wage in recent time.

    The governments at both federal and state levels are still negotiating over the proposed N30,000 minimum wage which the Tripartite Committee recommended to government.

    Many state governors have since disagreed with the committee, saying they would not be able to pay else there would be mass retrenchment of workers.

    On Wednesday, the development took a new turn when the organised labour said it would demand for two years arrears payment of the proposed new national minimum wage from the federal and state governments.

    “Workers in the country have made tremendous sacrifice and I think going forward, we are going to demand for arrears of those two years we have lost,” said Ayuba Wabba, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

    “Because I think with all fairness and justice, as they are going out to campaign we will also go out to campaign for our minimum wage.”

  • Labour to demand two years arrears of new minimum wage

    Labour to demand two years arrears of new minimum wage

    Labour on Wednesday said it would demand for two years arrears payment of the proposed new national minimum wage for Nigerian workers from the federal and state governments.

    The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Ayuba Wabba, said this when Rosa Pavanelli, general secretary, Public Service International (PSI), visited him in his office in Abuja.

    Wabba said the delay by President Muhammadu Buhari in transmitting the executive bill to the national assembly was worrisome.

    His words: “Workers in the country have made tremendous sacrifice and I think going forward, we are going to demand for arrears of those two years we have lost.

    “Because I think with all fairness and justice, as they are going out to campaign we will also go out to campaign for our minimum wage.

    “I also want to inform you that we have passed the first hurdle and it took us almost a year to be at the tripartite negotiation table for a figure, and we have agreed on a figure of N30, 000.

    “That figure has been transmitted to the Mr President who set up the committee and we have also told them to forward an executive bill immediately to the national assembly.

    “We are not unaware of the new tactics by the state governors to try to arm-twist what has already been done,’’ he said.

    The NLC President explained that six state governors were part of the negotiation process, with each representing their geopolitical zones.

    Wabba told Pavanelli how public hearings were held in the zones, where the state governors were invited to make their inputs.

    “So, mutually on the negotiation table, we have looked at all other factors, especially factors that were provided in convention 131 and 95 of the International Labour Organisation on the minimum wage in which five factors were considered,” he said.

    “The issue of the purchasing power parity, inflation, ability to pay, all those factors were considered and that is how our demand of N66, 500 was then agreed mutually on N30, 000.

    “So, workers have made enough sacrifices as we have lost already two years.”

  • Again, Buhari meets governors over minimum wage

    President Muhammadu Buhari is currently meeting with some state governors in his office at the State House in Abuja.

    Although the agenda of the meeting was not made known to journalists, however sources said the governors were at the villa to discuss the issue of minimum wage for Nigerian workers.

    The 36 state governors had met last week and announced they would not be able to pay the N30,000 per month minimum wage being demanded by labour unions.

    The governors threatened to carry out mass retrenchment if they are forced to implement the new wage.

    They subsequently set up a committee to meet with Buhari over the issue.

    Members of the committee include governors of Lagos, Kebbi, Plateau, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Enugu and Kaduna states.

    Also attending Monday’s meeting is the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, and Governor Abdulaziz Yari, the chairman of Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF).

    After a series of meetings by a tri-partite committee comprising labour, state and federal government officials led by a former Head of Service, Ama Pepple, the committee recommended government should increase the minimum wage to N30,000.

    Buhari had while receiving the report of the committee said he would subject it to all processes after which a bill would be sent to the National Assembly for passage into law.

     

  • Oshiomhole reacts to governors’ refusal to pay N30,000 minimum wage

    The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Comrade Adams Oshiomhole on Thursday insisted that Nigeria can afford living wage for workers.

    He said non payment of salaries by governors creates a viscious circle leading to low production and eventual loss of jobs.

    Oshiomhole said as a governor, he told his colleagues that payment of salaries was no burden, but a means of enhancing the development potential of the state, adding that the country’s major problem is stealing of public resources in the name or salary payment.

    The former Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) president spoke on a television programme.

    He said: “My views are clear, that payment of wages is not an act of kindness for an employer to pay the employees’ wages at the end of the month… Even the Holy Bible says that the laborer is entitled to its wages.

    “I think, again, this is where President Buhari stands out clearly. He has publicly asked public sector employers; how do you sleep when you have not paid your employers for one year. But he did not stop at lamenting it, he went on to provide the much- talked about bailout fund and said, ‘please use this money to pay your workers and pay pension arears.

    “And even the deductions from states that was done under the PDP in the name of settling our foreign debts, they went into state treasury and they over deducted; that was done under the PDP. But under President Muhammadu Buhari’s government, even inspite of the huge financial challenges that he faces, decided that in order to assist the states to meet up with their social obligations, to begin to pay what is now referred to as Paris Club refund.

    “He has done that two, three instalments and each time the governors are told that you must use this money, among other things to settle pension arrears and be up to date in the payment of salaries.

    “But I am very proud that this President has rich conscience, he recognises that the Nigerian worker deserves his wages and that is why he has publicly lamented that there are governors who have not paid salaries as at when due, whether they are PDP or APC, it is immaterial. And in seeking to deal with it he has also provided support across party divide and I think that is statesmanship at its best.

    “As for my views on the minimum wage, I tried to deal with it as a governor. I told my colleagues then that wage is not a burden in the society. In economics, when people work and get paid, purchasing power is enhanced and because purchasing power is enhanced producers will respond to that by seeking to produce more goods and services. And in the process they will recruit more hands.

    “. My being in government or now chairman of a party cannot change what I believe in.

    “The real problem in the public sector is money being stolen in the name of salaries, I find it embarrassing when we talk about ghost workers. And I ask the question, who counts ghosts. It is only in Nigeria that ghosts are known.”

  • 2019: Vote out governors that refuse to pay N30,000 minimum wage, NLC tells workers

    The organised labour on Thursday directed workers to vote out governors who do not implement payment of the N30,000:00 new minimum wage in their respective states.

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) specifically condemned threats by the govermors to sack workers should the new wage come into effect.

    To NLC President Ayuba Wabba, the threat is not new in the struggle for review of the national minimum wage.

    He said workers might be prevailed upon not to vote for governors who fail to pay the new wage.

    “Therefore, the current one by the governor of Zamfara (Abdulaziz Yari) cannot be used to intimidate labour,” Wabba said in a statement, reiterating the directive that workers should vote out anti-labour governors and politicians.

    “The consequences of workers’ retrenchment are too grievous for any political office holder truly elected by the people to contemplate.

    “Few political office holders are bent on enslaving Nigerian workers with peanuts mislabelled as salaries.

    “We urge such elected public officials to subject their humongous salaries and allowances, reputed to be among the highest in the world to public perusal. Pro rata with the minimum wage, they want to force down the throats of Nigerian workers,” he said.

    Wabba urged each of the governors to go to their state and inform workers on their individual position on the new national minimum wage of N30, 000.

    ”To the oppressors, we have only one answer for you, we will never sleep on our rights.

    “We hereby reiterate our directive to Nigerian workers to vote out any politician or political party that refuses to pay the new national minimum wage of N30, 000.

    “We shall continue to consolidate our efforts to strengthen already existing platforms and structures to give teeth to our resolve to vote out anti-labour governors and politicians in the forthcoming 2019 general election, ‘’Wabba said.

    He urged President Muhammadu Buhari to speedily present to the National Assembly the bill on the National Minimum Wage for appropriate amendment and implementation.

    “It would interest Nigerians to know that the new national minimum wage of N30,000 was a product of intense and robust negotiations at the National Minimum Wage Tripartite Negotiation Committee that lasted for one year.

    “At the National Minimum Wage Tripartite Negotiation Committee, state governments were represented by six states, one state from each of the six geo-political zones.

    The statement added: “The 1999 Nigerian Constitution (as amended) recognises individual states in the Collective Bargaining Process not Nigeria Governors Forum. The states, like the other social partners, have already defended their positions during negotiations at the National Minimum Wage Tripartite Negotiation Committee vis-à-vis counter proposals.

    “Alhaji Yari should desist from using the platform of the Nigeria Governors Forum to seek political relevance. His tactics of blackmail against workers is already time worn and the stench is already offensive.

    “We hereby reiterate our directive to Nigerian workers to vote out any politician or political party that refuses to pay the new national minimum wage of N30,000. We shall continue to consolidate our efforts to strengthen already existing platforms and structures to give teeth to our resolve to vote out anti-labour governors and politicians in the forthcoming 2019 general election.

  • BREAKING: We can’t pay N30k minimum wage, it will lead to bankruptcy -Nigerian governors

    *Expect retrenchment, governors warn labour

    Nigerian governors have said they cannot afford to pay workers a minimum wage of N30,000 unless the organised labour wants its members to be sacked.

    The governors at their emergency meeting in Abuja on Wednesday night, asked the Federal Government to also accede to the review of the national revenue allocation formula.

    The Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum who is also the Governor of Zamfara State, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari, who read the communiqué after the meeting, said that a new committee would be raised to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari over the issue.

    He said the committee would work out another formula towards quickly resolving the problem associated with the proposed minimum wage.

    Yari said, “Following a meeting of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum where we deliberated on the national minimum wage, governors resolved to re-strategise and put together another committee to meet with the President once again, to work out another formula towards quickly resolving the problem associated with the proposed N30.000 minimum wage which is impracticable unless labour agrees to a downsizing of the workforce all over the country or the Federal Government itself accedes to the review of the national revenue allocation formula.

    “Members of the committee who were nominated to see the President include the governors of Lagos, Kebbi, Plateau, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi. Enugu and Kaduna.”

    The federation account is currently being managed on a legal framework that allows funds to be shared under three major components – statutory allocation, Value Added Tax distribution; and allocation made under the derivation principle.

    Under statutory allocation, the Federal Government gets 52.68 per cent of the revenue shared; states, 26.72 per cent; and local governments, 20.60 per cent.

    The framework also provides that Value Added Tax revenue be shared thus; FG, 15 per cent; states, 50 per cent; and LGs, 35 per cent.

    Similarly, extra allocation is given to the oil producing states based on the 13 per cent derivation principle.

    Yari said that he and his colleagues had seen the report of the Tripartite Committee report presented to President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The committee, which is headed by Amal Pepple, recommended N30, 000 as minimum wage.

    Though the President received the report, he however said that he was still studying it.

    Yari said that the committee did not consider the submission of the governors who had earlier said they could only afford to pay N22, 500 as minimum wage.

    He said, “We have seen what has been presented to the President by the (Tripartite) Committee.

    “As a member of the committee, our representative there said the committee did not take our submission of N22,500 because it came late.

    “I am surprised. How can you do this without the input of the states because the states are the key stakeholders in this business.

    “So, a situation whereby our report was not taken or considered by the Tripartite Committee … then I don’t know how the committee wants us to work.”

    He regretted that while the governors would want to pay, they would not be able to do so due to meagre resources available to them.

    He said “But we still say we want to pay, but the issue is the ability to pay.

    “If we say no, it is not about the ability to pay, just pay, I don’t know how this formulae will work and I don’t know how we can get a solution to the issue.

    “We are paying N18,000 (as minimum wage today), but when the President assumed office, about 27 states were not able to pay, not that they chose not to pay.

    “So, now you say N30,000, how many of them can pay? We will be bankrupt (if we pay). So as Nigerians, we should look at the issues seriously.

    “While other people are saying that governors are riding jets and living in affluence, that one is not luxury but compulsory.

    “Like Lagos that is paying about N7bn as salaries; if you say it should pay N30,000, now it will be N13bn.

    “From our calculation, it is only Lagos State that will be able to pay N30,000. As Nigerians, this is our country; there is no other country we have and we should be fair to this country.”

    He said governors would continue to dialogue with workers on the need for them (the workers ) to see the difficulties they (governors ) were facing.

    He said, “As for the way forward, we will continue to talk with Labour. Let them see reasons and difficulties some of us have.

    “For instance, the money Lagos State is using to pay is not coming from Abuja.

    “They have a way of getting their money from the IGR and that is why they can afford to pay. They get money through VAT (as well).

    “Apart from Lagos, even Rivers State cannot afford to pay. So we have been crying out about this since 2011 but no one will listen.

    “One critical example is that some states ration their salaries while some others put everything they earn on the table and ask labour to come and see and ask them to suggest how much should go for capital and personnel costs.

    “Some say 70 per cent for personnel cost and 30 per cent for capital projects and yet the states cannot pay and they put the remaining as outstanding.”

    He said it was wrong to use the price of crude oil in the international market to determine the minimum wage.

    Yari said, “So, let us look at this matter seriously to see how we can do it properly. It is our primary responsibility to see that everybody is happy.

    “It is the same labour that is pushing for the N30,000 that will still turn around to say that the governors did not do any infrastructure and how are we going to achieve that by paying only salaries?”

  • BREAKING: Nigerian governors call for emergency meeting over minimum wage

    BREAKING: Nigerian governors call for emergency meeting over minimum wage

    Nigerian governors under the auspices of the Nigeria Governors Forum have called for an emergency meeting where the issue of the minimum wage is expected to be discussed in Abuja tonight.

    It is expected that the meeting, which will be presided over by the Governor of Zamfara State, Alhaji Abdulaziz Yari, will take a definite stand on the amount the governors will be able to pay as minimum wage to avert a strike by the organised labour.

    Labour leaders issue December ultimatum

    Meanwhile, Labour leaders yesterday issued December as deadline for the full implementation of the N30,000 new national minimum wage.

    They also warned that any reduction in the N30,000 agreed by the Tripartite Committee on the National Minimum Wage as contained in a report to President Muhammadu Buhari or any further delay in its passage could have negative consequences.

    The President of Trade Union Congress (TUC), Bobboi Bala Kaigama, and the Secretary General of the Association of Senior Civil Servant of Nigeria (ASCSN), Bashir Lawal, gave the warning at the National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the ASCSN in Abuja.

    The unions said Nigerian workers patiently await President Muhammadu Buhari to forward an executive bill on the minimum wage to the National Assembly for passage into law

  • Atiku mocks Buhari, approves N33,000 minimum wage for his staff

    Atiku mocks Buhari, approves N33,000 minimum wage for his staff

    The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has approved for all of his staff in his corporation, N33,000 as minimum wage.

    The managing director of the Atiku owned, Gotel Communications, Mohammed El-Yakub, confirmed this in a statement on Thursday.

    The Gotel Communications is based in Yola.

    “The N33,000 new salary scale, which takes effect from November 2018, includes domestic servants and all categories of workers on the former vice president’s payroll,” El-Yakub said.

    This is following the recommendation of the proposed N30,000 as minimum wage by the tripartite committee set up by the Federal Government on Wednesday.

    Recall that Atiku had on Wednesday said President Muhammadu Buhari cannot be trusted to implement the proposed N30,000.

    In a statement issued by his media office, the presidential hopeful said Buhari, who is known for ‘flip-flopping’ may not have the political will to implement the new wage which he said does not even translate to a ‘living wage’.

    It said Buhari has failed to note that the workers are the goose that ‘lay the golden eggs’ which members of his administration are enjoying. It added that the government has become synonymous with flip-flopping in policy implementation.

    However, Buhari said while receiving the Tripartite Committee’s report on the Review of the National Minimum Wage on Wednesday that he will transmit an Executive bill (on National Minimum Wage) to the National Assembly for its passage within the shortest possible time and that he is committed to new minimum wage

    “Our plan is to transmit the Executive bill to the National Assembly for its passage within the shortest possible time.”

    “I am fully committed to having a new National Minimum Wage Act in the very near future.”