Bimbola Oyesola
The joint body of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) has warned the Federal Government of impending industrial crisis, if the committee on the consequential adjustment of the new national minimum wage fails to get back to the negotiating table as soon as possible.
The two labour centres, in a letter to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, expressed their disappointment that the meeting between Joint National Public Services Negotiating Council (JHPSNC) and government on the relativity and consequential adjustment of salaries arising from the national wage of N30,000 per month was stalemated.
The letter, dated July 17, 2019, signed by the NLC president, Ayuba Wabba, and his TUC counterpart, Quadri Olaleye, said it was a follow-up to the one sent in by JHPSNC on July 16 on the same status of the negotiation.
The two labour centres said by the letter they were expressing concern and dismay about the needles stalemate.
Only the affiliates of the two labour centres in the public sector were involved in the consequential adjustment negotiation, but the leadership of the two labour centres said it has now become imperative for them to be involved in the negotiation from now on.
The letter read, “We would wish to commence this letter by first commending Mr. President for setting up this committee in which we all had confidence to expeditiously work out the modalities for relativity and any other consequential effect that may arise from the new national minimum wage.
“Our optimism was hinged on the fact that this would not be the first time we would be having this type of committee.”
The NLC and TUC said they were worried by the stalemate, adding that what the government was offering is far too small to be acceptable.
The labour centres recalled that, in the immediate past exercise, 53 per cent relativity was used across board, stating that the resort to unnecessary obduracy by the government’s team was neither helpful nor reflective of precedence.
The letter read further, “The option of a staggered implementation conveyed in a press statement by the chairman of the salaries and wages commission is similarly not in good faith, for the notion of staggered implementation is both divisive and catastrophic.
“It is important to note that the national minimum wage has always been implemented holistically in acknowledgement of the fact that we all go to the same market.
“In light of this and the need to head off a major industrial crisis, we would urge you to do all that is necessary to ensure that the meeting of the committee is reconvened with NLC and TUC.”