NLC makes fresh minimum wage demand, tells workers when to expect increment

The organised labour said it has submitted a fresh demand for minimum
wage above N56,000 to the tripartite committee on minimum wage.

It also assured that talks on the workers' salaries review would be
concluded between June and July this year.

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, said the new demand was to reflect
inflation and other economic realities in the country.

The acting NLC President, Kiri Mohammed, disclosed this at the 11th
Quadrennial Delegates Conference of the Nigeria Civil Service Union on
Thursday in Abuja.

Mohammed did not mention the exact figure the organised labour was
demanding but explained that it was a joint decision between the NLC
and the Trade Union Congress.

He said, "We submitted our request, NLC has decided to look at the
figure and modify it, we actually modified it, an upward review above
N56,000, but I am not going to tell you how much because the president
(Ayuba Wabba) is supposed to say it.

"We have submitted it to the secretariat of the tripartite committee.
The review is in conjunction with the TUC. You can't do it alone, all
of us met and decided to put heads together and look at the realities
on the ground."

The NLC chief also expressed confidence that the minimum wage bill
would be passed by the National Assembly and implemented by the
Federal Government this year.

He said, "Who made the budget? I believe if they (government) are
serious, we can finish this matter towards the middle of this year,
June, July.

"If we can finish at that time, then before the end of the year,
certainly the President must send whatever we agreed to the National
Assembly for them to look at it and for him to assent it as a law, but
I know that once we agreed, government would implement whatever is
agreed."

Mohammed, however, complained about the slow pace of negotiations by
the tripartite committee, noting that it had not held any meeting
since it was inaugurated.

He added, "We had an inaugural meeting and they have not called for a
meeting, I won't call it a deliberate delay, but it looks as if there
is a deliberate delay. We have not started discussion or anything."