Staff of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) are considering embarking on an industrial action over non implementation of the new minimum wage of N30, 000 two years after it was reviewed.
According to TheCable online, the failure to adopt the new wage has unsettled the staff of the congress amid talks of a possible strike to push for the implementation. Workers at the NLC secretariat who asked not to be named because they were not authorised to speak on the matter confirmed that the Ayuba Wabba-led management still pays them their previous wage.
The medium said at the secretariat yesterdayt none of the congress’ leaders was available yesterday for comments as they are all in Kaduna, where they had directed a strike after accusing the state government of “anti-worker policies”.
Recall that President Muhamadu Buhari had in May 2018 signed the wage bill, effectively raising the minimum pay Nigerian workers can earn from N18,000 to N30,000.
The bill is binding on all employers of labour, both in the public and private sectors.
But while the NLC has been threatening industrial action against states yet to implement the adjusted minimum wage, the staff at its national secretariat and state offices are still hoping for when they would enjoy such privilege.
In April 2019, Wabba, the NLC president, had said that all employers of labour yet to effect the N30,000 minimum wage except for those employing less than 25 persons would be made to face the law.
In January, he criticised governors yet to effect th review, saying: “We call on all our state councils still struggling with their state governments on the payment of the national minimum wage and consequential salary increase, and those whose state governments have unilaterally cut wages and are owing workers salary arrears to prepare for mass industrial action and protests this New Year.”