By Seyi Babalola
The Nigerian Government has again issued an invitation to organized labour to continue minimum wage discussions, according to a source familiar with the situation who spoke with Newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday.
The source confirmed that Labour will accept the offer.
“A letter has been addressed to Labour by the committee chairman and signed by the NSIWC chairman. The meeting is scheduled for Friday.
“Of course, Labour will attend. If they present a better offer on Friday we will accept it.”
On Tuesday, the minimum wage committee had adjourned indefinitely after talks between the Federal Government and organised Labour broke down as labour rejected the Federal Government’s N60,000 fresh proposal, up from the earlier N57,000 offer.
At the meeting, labour also lowered its demand by removing N3,000 from the N497,000 it proposed last week, pegging the new proposal at N494,000.
To fast-track the negotiation process, the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress of Nigeria on May Day gave the committee till the end of the month to wrap up talks on a new national minimum wage.
The ultimatum will expire on Friday night.
The President of the TUC, Festus Osifo, said the ultimatum issued by labour remained following the breakdown of talks on Tuesday.
“We have an ultimatum on May Day that if by May end, we don’t have a new minimum wage that will take a worker home, we will not be able to guarantee industrial peace.
“We are sticking to that ultimatum,” Osifo said.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, on Wednesday, appealed to organised Labour to be considerate and patriotic in their demands in the ongoing negotiation for a new national minimum wage.
Onyejeocha made the appeal in a statement signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations in the ministry, Olajide Oshundun, in Abuja, on Wednesday.
The minister said the Federal Government had consistently taken steps to secure a fair and realistic wage for Nigerian workers.
She, therefore, urged labour to recognise that the nation’s economy was still on the path of recovery from the effect of the pandemic and other economic distress.
“We appeal to organised labour and, indeed, other relevant stakeholders to be considerate and patriotic in their demands, recognising that our economy is still recovering from the devastating effects of the pandemic and other global economic shocks.
“We are committed to putting the people first and ensuring that our economic policies benefit all Nigerians, not just a select few.
“The government remains dedicated to prioritising the well-being of our citizens and it wants to urge all relevant parties to demonstrate patriotism and understanding.
“This is particularly during this critical period when President Bola Tinubu, is working diligently to revitalise the economy,” she said.
