The Senate has pledged its support for the passage of a new minimum wage bill if the ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and organized labor on a new wage structure are successfully concluded.
The Senate also praised the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) for suspending the recent industrial action taken by workers. The action was a demand for a new minimum wage far higher than the current N30,000.
The President of the Senate, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, expressed the senate’s position, applauding the decision of the unions to suspend the strike for five days to allow for the conclusion of the negotiations.
The Senate was about to discuss a motion on the urgent need to call off the strike when news broke that the labour unions had suspended the industrial action.
The motion was initiated by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Labor and Employment, Sen. Diket Plang, and supported by the Deputy President of the Senate, Sen. Barau Jibrin. However, the prayers of the motion were stood down as the NLC/TUC suspended the strike.
Sen. Akpabio emphasized that resolving the new minimum wage agitation involves several issues, including the likely retrenchment of workers if the new wage figure is deemed “too high” for employers to afford.
He cited the case of the current N30,000 minimum wage, which, according to the Senate President, has yet to be paid by some employers and local governments.
Additionally, the Senate intends to make contributions while awaiting the incoming bill on minimum wage for enactment, for the benefit of all Nigerians.stic approach be looked at, and I have taken the suggestion that we should not rest until we arrive at an amicable resolution of the issue and that the National Assembly should also continue to make its own contributions towards the ongoing negotiations.”
Labour is demanding a new minimum wage of N494,000, as against the N60,000 the government agreed to pay, a disagreement that led to the strike.
After a last-minute intervention by the leadership of the National Assembly on Sunday night, Labour refused to shift ground and proceeded to shut down public services on Monday.
But another round of talks began on Monday night, which led to the suspension of the strike on Tuesday as parties agreed to continue with the negotiations.
