As the zonal public hearing takes off today, the state chapters of the Trade Union Congress in Ogun and Katsina have called for the minimum wage to be retained on the exclusive legislative list.
The Ogun State TUC Chairman, Akeem Lasisi, declined to speak on the amount being demanded as the minimum wage by his union, noting that the union’s national leadership would provide the direction in that regard.
However, he insisted that the government comply with the International Labour Organisation convention on labour remuneration.
Lasisi stated, “The national will give us the agreed amount but we are demanding that the clause in the last minimum wage that says ‘minimum wage affects only employers of labour with 50 workers should be removed.’
“It should affect everybody. Nigeria must comply with Convention 131 of the International Labour Organisation
“We are also demanding the National Minimum Wage be retained in the exclusive legislative list because a country must have a national minimum wage.
“I am submitting a memorandum at the public hearing. I want the national (TUC leadership) to give us the directive before I release it.’’
The Katsina State NLC Chairman, Husseini Hamisu, said the council would present at the public hearing.
“We have been invited and we shall be there. I will not be there but I am sending my representative I’m on my way to Abuja now for another official assignment,” he disclosed.
The state TUC chairman, Muntari Lawal, said he would make a presentation about “a befitting minimum wage for workers.”
He added, “We shall also suggest that the issue of national minimum wage be on the exclusive list.”
Speaking in the same tone, the Kwara State NLC Chairman, Muritala Olayinka, insisted that workers’ wage should be retained in the exclusive list and be determined by the Federal Government.
He disclosed that the North-Central meeting would be held in Abuja.
He argued, “There should be no difference in the salary paid to the federal and state workers because they buy food and other goods from the same market but allowances should vary from state to state.’’
The labour leader suggested that state governors ought to attend the zonal meeting of the minimum wage committee.
Warning against any delayed implementation of the envisaged new minimum wage, Olayinka stated, “We want the implementation of the minimum wage at the federal and the state levels to take off at the same time because we don’t want the state governments to complain that they don’t know what was discussed on the new minimum wage.’’
“We will also give the committee an amount of money that every category of workers would earn based on the economic reality in the country. The government should not tell us that there is no money when it comes to the turn of the workers.
“If the government has the funds to purchase vehicles of about N160m for each Senator and N130m for each member of the House of Representatives, it should not complain that there is no money when it comes to the turn of the workers,” Muritala cautioned.
Commenting on labour demand, the Sokoto State Commissioner for Information, Sambo Danchadi, said the state government had not decided whether the minimum wage should be moved to the concurrent list.
“If I have to give my personal opinion, I would have said move the minimum wage from the exclusive list to the concurrent list to allow governors of each state to determine the minimum wage of their workers.
“I’m sure if you look at it, the economy of this state cannot be compared to that of Lagos state or Rivers state. So, allowing every state to determine their wage will be a good thing,” he added.
For the Kano State Commissioner of Information, Baba Dantiye, the issue of whether the minimum wage should be moved from the exclusive list to the concurrent list has to be brought before the State Executive Council for deliberation.
“The issue has not come to the Executive Council for deliberation but as soon as a decision is taken certainly it will be made public,” Dantiye said.
The labour leaders in Kebbi, Bayelsa, Benue, Kano, Ekiti, Rivers and Delta, have also said they would be at the meeting to present their proposals.
The Kebbi state NLC Chairman, Murtala Usman, noted, “Yes, we have been contacted about the meeting. I am sure you know it is already segregated into zones and we in the North-West, ours is expected to take place in Kano.
“We will hold a meeting on who will present our demands at the meeting. I can assure you that we have gotten the invitation and already looking forward to the meeting,” he added.
The labour leaders in Benue said they would present their demands to the committee during its sitting today.
Chairmen of the state chapters of NLC and TUC, Terungwa Igbe and Gideon Akaa, in separate phone interviews expressed their views.
But while the NLC proposed N300,000 minimum wage for workers, the TUC said N150,000 is a realistic demand.
“The meeting will be held in Abuja on Thursday; our demand as labour from Benue State is N300,000,” Igbe said.
On his part, the TUC chairman said, “We have forwarded our demands to our national headquarters in Abuja from Benue State; our demand is N150,000.
“We also demanded that the Federal Government should ensure that the exchange rate comes down and stabilize because if you demand N500,000 as minimum wage and the foreign exchange rate continues to rise, there is no sense in that.’’
Bayelsa TUC
The Bayelsa State TUC said its proposal to the minimum wage committee would not be different from the demands that the TUC representatives in the committee would make at the zonal meeting.
The state TUC chairman, Julius Laye, said, “We are invited. The zonal sitting will take place at Ibom Hall, IBB Way, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
“On the minimum wage, our people are still talking. They have not given us a final amount to demand. You know it’s a tripartite committee. So, for us, whatever our people who are also members of the committee table, is what we will support.”
Speaking with one of our correspondents, the Delta State TUC Chairman, Mathine Bolum said he would align with the demands made by the union’s national leadership.
His counterpart in the NLC, Goodluck Ofobruku, could not be reached for comment.
The TUC Chairman in Ekiti state, Sola Adigun, said that the labour centre in the states comprising the Southwest is strategizing for a common front.
Adigun said the TUC in the Southwest states were also making efforts to ensure that their positions at the meeting were not at variance with that of the national body of the labour union.
The TUC state chairman, however, assured that the labour body would not short-change its members in the bid to have a new national living wage
“By the grace of God, TUC Ekiti State under my leadership will be represented there to present our positions. However, like the governors are trying to synergise and come up with a common front, TUC in the Southwest wants to do likewise,” he stated.
Madukwe B. Nwabuisi is an accomplished journalist renown for his fearless reporting style and extensive expertise in the field. He is an investigative journalist, who has established himself as a kamikaze reporter.
