Labour rejects N60,000 minimum wage proposed by FG

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have rejected the N60,000 proposed by the federal government as the minimum wage for workers.

On May 15, the NLC and TUC rejected a N48,000 minimum wage proposed by the federal government.

At the time, Joe Ajaero, NLC president, said the government was not serious about negotiating with the labour.

“The government’s proposal of a paltry N48,000 as the minimum wage does not only insult the sensibilities of Nigerian workers but also falls significantly short of meeting our needs and aspirations,” the NLC president said.

On May 21, the federal government increased the proposed minimum wage to N54,000, which the labour again rejected and described as “unacceptable”.

Speaking with TheCable on Tuesday, Ben Ukpa, NLC spokesperson, said the leaders of the labour unions were currently meeting with the representatives of the federal government.

He said the federal government had proposed a minimum wage of N60,000, which the unions had rejected.

The NLC and TUC had proposed N615,500 as the minimum wage that the federal government should pay Nigerian workers, citing the high cost of living.

The labour unions gave the federal government until May 31 to finalise the new national minimum wage fixing process.

“We need an agreement that will genuinely reflect the true value of Nigerian workers’ contributions to the nation’s development and the current crisis of survival facing Nigerians as a result of the government’s policies,” the labour movement said.