New wage: NLC proposes sanctions for defaulting govs
The Nigeria Labour Congress on Sunday gave a robust indication that it might press for the inclusion of a clause which might prescribe sanctions for governors and native authorities directors who didn’t implement the brand new minimal wage.
The National Treasurer of the NLC, Hakeem Ambali, who disclosed this in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja, stated the refusal of state governors to pay the present minimal wage was a results of a scarcity of punitive measures within the Minimum Wage Act of 2019.
He stated this as The PUNCH on Sunday learnt that the 37-member committee arrange by the Federal Government would meet this week to debate experiences submitted by varied sub-committees from the six zones of the nation.
President Bola Tinubu via his Vice-president, Kashim Shettima, had on January 30,2024 inaugurated the 37-member panel on the brand new minimal wage.
With its membership reducing throughout federal, and state governments, the personal sector, and organised labour, the panel is to advocate a brand new nationwide minimal wage for the nation.
Proposed sanctions
Ambali stated, “When we take a look at the buying energy in Nigeria, we will see an enormous distinction between 2019 and now. With the stoppage of the fee of the gas subsidy, we will see a rise within the hardship of Nigerians.
“In the brand new minimal wage invoice which can quickly be signed into regulation by the President, we have now put in some inner clauses to make it troublesome for governors to not pay the brand new minimal wage. It can be good to know that a number of the governors are additionally concerned within the negotiation course of.
“Labour itself needs to be responsive. Once the National Minimum Wage Bill is signed into regulation juxtaposed with Labour’s responsiveness, we all know they are going to pay. As you may see,0 even personal firms have began growing the salaries of staff and a few of them are even paying wage awards for his or her staff.
“So in the bill, the clause involves sanctions and also talks about increased allocation to local governments so that nobody will have any excuse of not paying the approved rate.”
Meanwhile, the 37-member Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage appointed by the Federal Government will maintain a gathering this week to debate proposals by stakeholders on the brand new minimal wage.
An govt invoice can be anticipated to be despatched to the National Assembly as a type of modification to the present Minimum Wage Act.
The minimal wage to be unveiled is predicted to cushion the results of the removing of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit.
During the general public hearings, completely different zones steered completely different quantities for minimal wage. The South-West zone steered N794,000; the North -East proposed the sum of N560,000 as minimal wage; North- West proposed N485,000; The North-Central proposed N709,000; the South-South demanded N850,000 whereas the South -East demanded N540,000.
