Ngige Denies New Minimum Wage Claims, Says FG Can Pay N24k
Get real time updates directly on you device, subscribe now.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige has denied an agreement between the Federal Government and the organised labour over the new National Minimum Wage.
Dr. Ngige made the denial on Wednesday in an interview with State House correspondents after a meeting of the Federal Executive Council [FEC].
The FEC meeting was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
Speaking, Ngige said that the government and Labour Unions are yet to reach an agreement, contrary to claims by the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress [NLC], Mr. Ayuba Wabba.
He insisted that there was no truth in the claim that the federal and state governments have agreed to increase the minimum wage to N30,000.
He accepted that the organised labour had stuck to N30,000 but that the Federal Government agreed to pay only N24,000.
Meanwhile, the organised private sector proposed N25,000, while state governors offered N20,000.
Citing Convention 131 of the International Labour Organisation, he said that the most important thing to consider in fixing the new minimum wage is the ability to pay and not empty promises.
ElombahNews had on October 8, 2018, reported that the NLC President said that the Federal Government is set to announce the new minimum wage as the Tripartite Committee completes its assignment for onward submission to President Muhammadu Buhari.
Related Posts
Mr. Wabba made this known while speaking with newsmen in Abuja.
According to him, the committee used the two-day to reconvene and deliberate on a new minimum wage figure that was acceptable to all employers of labour in the country.
“I want to assure workers that all has been concluded and will be passed for signing within the week.
“I also want to appreciate the Organised Private Sector, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) for their resolve to pay the new minimum wage when it is signed into law,” he said.
The NLC president, however, refused to disclose the figure arrived at by the Tripartite Committee on the new National Minimum Wage.
Wabba said the presidency would make it public after deliberation by the National Economic Council meeting.
