The organized labor unions, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), have rejected the proposed N62,000 minimum wage for workers,Daily Trust reports.
During an appearance on Channels TV’s Morning Brief on Monday, Chris Onyeka, Assistant General Secretary of NLC, emphasized that the union will not negotiate a “starvation wage.”
Onyeka warned that if the Federal Government and the National Assembly do not act on the workers’ demands by Tuesday, the NLC and TUC would convene to decide whether to resume the nationwide industrial action that was suspended last week.
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“Our position is very clear. We have never considered accepting N62,000 or any wage that is below what Nigerian workers deserve. We will not negotiate a starvation wage,” Onyeka stated. “We have never contemplated ₦100,000, let alone N62,000. We are firm at N250,000, which we consider a reasonable concession to the government and other social partners given the current market realities and the cost of essential goods.”
Onyeka stressed that the responsibility now lies with the Federal Government and the National Assembly. “Our demand is for the government to send an executive bill to the National Assembly and for the assembly to create a national minimum wage act that meets our demands,” he said. “If our demands are not met, we have given the federal government one-week notice, which expires tomorrow. If we do not see any tangible response by then, the organized labor unions will meet to decide on the next course of action.”
He clarified the union’s stance on the recent suspension of the strike. “We said we were relaxing a nationwide indefinite strike, essentially putting it on pause. If the union leadership decides to remove that pause, it means the strike will resume.”
The labor unions had suspended the strike for a week after the Federal Government requested time for negotiations following the disruptive strike action on Monday.
