NLC, TUC Demands Increase in Minimum Wage

Ahead of the Workers’ Day celebrations which holds annually on May 1st, Nigeria’s labour union leaders have demanded that the federal government increase the minimum wage from N18,000 to N56,000.

President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, told newsmen in Abuja, on Wednesday that he hoped a tripartite system to look into the new minimum wage demand would soon be put in place.

The labour leader said , “Our argument is that, yes, it’s true that the economy is not doing well, but the law is also clear that the issue must be looked into. And workers should not be seen to be sleeping on their rights.”

The NLC leader argued that labour laws require that the minimum wage be reviewed every five years and that the labour unions are presently working out a process of engaging the government on the issues of welfare of workers.

When asked if states that have not been able to implement the N18,000 minimum wage would be able to pay N56,000 monthly, Comrade Wabba said, “First, you must understand the logic behind the minimum wage. The logic is to ensure that no worker earns below what can sustain him for 30 days.

“You also know that when we negotiated the N18,000 minimum wage, you know the value in terms of exchange rate, it was almost at $110 to the naira. Today, it has been reduced to virtually nothing. It’s also about law; the law envisages that within a cycle of five years, the issue of inflation will be there and the issue of purchasing power reduction will be there.

“Mind you, the challenges  in our economy, we don’t expect it to be forever. It is something that is transient. Economy will always go up and down. We are passing through a turbulent time.”

The NLC president urged the federal government to borrow a leaf from American President Barack Obama whom he said “increased the United States minimum wage in 2008/2009 when the US economy was in recession, because his understanding is that people need to be empowered to have the purchasing power to buy.”

President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Mr Boboi Kaigama also told newsmen that the laws were due for a review, necessitating the demand for a new minimum wage.

Story: The Nation