The era of paying slave wages is gone - Organized Labour pressures Tinubu

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) says it will not accept anything below what it expects as a minimum wage, stating that the federal government has the right to consult with whomever it wants before making a decision.

Speaking on behalf of Organised Labour on Tuesday, June 25, the NLC told the Tinubu-led administration that the era of paying slave wages is over.

This comment comes after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said yesterday that he will consult with the 36 state governors and members of the organized private sector (OPS) before arriving at the figure that will be submitted to the National Assembly as the new national minimum wage.

Speaking with Vanguard, NLC’s General Secretary, Emmanuel Ugboaja, said: “We are waiting for them. One thing is clear, and that is the era of paying slave wages is over.

‘’As workers, we cannot be slaves or live in a slave camp in our country. The workplace is about tripartism. In the world of work today, the global practice is tripartism. That is the government, the employers, and the workers.

“Nigeria cannot be different in the comity of nations. So, the era of slaves and slave camps is over for good. So, we are waiting for them to consult and make a decision.”

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja, that a memo on the report of the new minimum wage was presented to the council but noted that it was stepped down due to being a national matter that involved the governors and the organized private sector.

He said that after wider consultations with the relevant stakeholders, the President, with informed knowledge, would then forward a figure that would be the national minimum wage.

Recall that there was a stalemate at the end of the tripartite committee meeting on the new national minimum wage. The government team and organized private sector offered N62,000 from the current N30,000, but Labour, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), demanded a N250,000 living wage.