The organised labour has said the proposed N66,500 minimum wage should apply to all workers in the country.
Speaking at the Workers’ Day celebration in Abuja, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Ayuba Wabba, said workers would vote out governments that failed to pay the new minimum wage.
He said, “We insist that once the Minimum Wage bill is signed into law, all employers in public and private sectors must pay at once.
“We shall resist moves to renegotiate the minimum wage at any level.”
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo in his remarks said the Buhari-led administration was committed to improving workers’ welfare.
He endorsed the demand for a new minimum wage, noting that it was the responsibility of government to establish the necessary social protection floor for all Nigerian workers based on the ability of each tier of government to pay.
Osinbajo added, “We believe that those who can pay above the social protection floor are free to do so, as many have been doing in many states and sectors of the economy.
“It is my hope that the tripartite committee, comprising government, labour and the private sector will expedite its assignment to enable the Federal Government to present an executive bill on a new national minimum wage to the National Assembly,” the VP said.
The Presidency on Tuesday described President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration as the most worker-friendly in the history of the nation.
______
Follow us on Twitter at @thesignalng
Copyright 2018 SIGNAL. Permission to use portions of this article is granted provided appropriate credits are given to www.signalng.com and other relevant sources.
