In order to arrive at the amount that will be presented to the National Assembly in the form of an Executive Bill as the new national minimum wage, President Bola Tinubu announced yesterday that he will confer with representatives of the organised private sector (OPS) and the 36 state governors.
This was disclosed by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting presided over by President Tinubu at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The minister said a memo on the report of the new minimum wage was presented to the council but noted that it was stepped down, being a national matter that had to do with the governors and the organized private sector.
He stated that the President, armed with knowledge, would provide a figure that would serve as the national minimum wage only following more extensive discussions with the pertinent parties.
Remember that following the tripartite committee meeting on the new national minimum wage, the organised private sector and government team offered N62,000, up from the current N30,000, while labour, consisting of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), demanded N250,000, the living wage.
Following a statement made by NLC President Mr. Joe Ajaero, which indicated that Labour had anticipated the President to get in touch with the tripartite committee members in order to harmonise the figure, the President has decided to confer with the pertinent stakeholders.
The impasse that emerged from the tripartite committee meetings served as the foundation for Comrade Ajaero’s stance.
While briefing State House correspondents, the minister said: “I want to inform Nigerians here that the Federal Executive Council, FEC, deliberated on that (report of the Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage) and the decision is that because the new national minimum wage is not just that of the federal government, it is an issue that involves the federal, state, local governments, and organized private sector and, of course, organized labour.
“That memo was stepped down to enable Mr. President to consult further, especially with the state governors and organized private sector, before he makes a presentation to the National Assembly, and before an executive bill is presented to the National Assembly.
“So I want to state that on the new national minimum wage, Mr. President is going to consult further, so he can have an informed position because the new national minimum wage, like I said, is not just an issue of the Federal Government.
“It affects the state governments, it affects the local governments, it also affects the organized private sector, and that is why it is called national minimum wage. It’s not just an affair of the Federal Government.
“So, Mr. President has studied the report and he’s going to consult wider before a final submission is made to the National Assembly.”
