The Federal Government’s deadline of May 31 to complete the new national minimum wage setting process for workers, according to Organized Labor, is still in place.
This was said in a statement released following the Nigeria Labour Congress’s (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress’s (TUC) joint emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Tuesday in Abuja.
The presidents of the NLC and TUC, Mr. Joe Ajaero and Mr. Festus Osifo, respectively, jointly issued a statement stating that organized labor’s NEC had carefully discussed the matter and taken into account how the current circumstances impact the general populace and workers in Nigeria.
Labour clarified that while acknowledging the work made so far, NEC emphasized how urgent it was to come to a just and equitable accord.
“We require a deal that will accurately represent the contributions made by Nigerian laborers to the country’s progress as well as the survival crisis that Nigerians are currently experiencing as a result of government actions.
According to the statement, “The NEC affirms its commitment to ensuring that workers’ interests and welfare are adequately protected in the negotiation process.”
Similarly, in order to prevent industrial action, organized labor issued a combined two-week ultimatum to all state councils whose governments had not yet fully implemented the N30,000 national minimum wage and its ensuing revisions.
Additionally, it restated its demands for the “vexatious apartheid categorization into bands to alleviate the suffering of Nigerian workers and citizens” and the urgent reversal of the electricity pricing hike.
Labour also issued a May 31 deadline for the federal government and the National Electricity Regulatory Commission, or NERC, to comply with the requests.
The organized labor emphasized that the demands were non-negotiable and encouraged the government to give industrial peace the highest priority while resolving the concerns.
It urged all affiliated unions, laborers, and Civil Society Organizations throughout Nigeria to stick together and show unwavering support during this crucial time.