Labour union rejects N62,000, demands N250,000, may strike on Tuesday

The Organisation for Organised Labour has said that it will not recognise a minimum pay of N62,000 or N100,000 for Nigerian labourers as a “starvation wage.”

At the most recent Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage meeting on Friday, it reiterated its demand that N250,000 be the living wage for the typical Nigerian worker.

While answering questions on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme on Monday, Chris Onyeka, Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, disclosed this.

According to Onyeka, the Federal Government was granted a one-week grace period last Tuesday, June 4, 2024, which will end at midnight on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

He said that the organs of the National Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) would convene tomorrow, Tuesday, to decide whether to resume the statewide industrial action that was eased last week, should the Federal Government and National Assembly not act upon the requests of the workers.

Read Also: Labour union demands immediate shutdown of flights and power supply in Imo state

“We have a very clear position. We have never given thought to taking N62,000 or any other pay that we are aware is insufficient to send Nigerian labourers home. We’re not going to bargain for a pitiful salary.

“Never have we considered N100,000, much less N62,000. We remain at N250,000 because we felt that was sufficient accommodation for the government and other relevant stakeholders in this specific scenario. Not only are frivolities what motivate us, but also the realities of the market—the things we regularly purchase, like rice bags, yams, garri, and so on.

“The call has been received by the National Assembly and the Federal Government. We are not calling for it. We want the administration to review and submit an Executive Bill to the National Assembly, and we want the National Assembly to consider our demands and the different aspects of the law before creating a National Minimum Act that satisfies them.

He went on, “We have given the Federal Government a one-week notice to look at the concerns, and that one-week expires tomorrow (Tuesday) if that does not match our expectations. In the event that by tomorrow there is still no concrete reaction from the government, the Organised Labour organs will convene to choose the course of action.

“What we said was evident. We declared that a nationwide, indefinite strike would be eased. It’s as like you’re pausing it.

“Therefore, we revert to the previous state of affairs if you impose a pause on something and the trade union organs that oversee us determine that it should be lifted.”