Rose Ejembi, Makurdi
Benue State Government has approved the sum of N30,009.95k as new minimum wage for the State civil servants.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Labour and Employment, Chief Ode Enyi who announced this at a press conference in Makurdi, the state capital explained that Governor Samuel Ortom had earlier setup a negotiation committee to look into the matter.
He said the committee which was headed by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof Tony Ijoho worked harmoniously with labour leaders in the state to arrive at the new wage after a series of meetings.
“As you are aware, the issue of Benue is really pathetic and a peculiar situation. Peculiar in the sense that the governor has always emphasized that the N30,000 minimum wage is not even enough to cater for an average family person.
“But as it is, when you are executing issue which you want to implement, it must also be backed with the ability to execute it, that is the finance.
“However, despite all that, the governor has decided that N30,009. 99 should be the minimum wage in this state and it was presented to the labour along with the proposal for the consequential adjustments for the other levels”.
“And so, all parties have agreed that it was a monumental decision and milestone in the negotiation of minimum wage in the state.”
Enyi noted that Benue state is about the third highest paying civil service state after Lagos and Rivers states, adding that state government would commence payment of the new wage as soon as the consequential adjustments negotiation for other levels are completed not minding the initial salary.
“The approval and willingness to pay this wage is what matters. When you look at the states that have started implementing the new minimum wage, they are not what the Benue state government is currently paying. Now that the new wage has been approved, the consequential adjustments will be discussed with the labour for us to commence immediate payment”, Enyi said.
