We Are Close To Agreeing On A New National Minimum Wage – Hope Uzodimma

Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma, says the Tripartite Committee on the minimum wage is nearing an agreement on a new national minimum wage.

He made this known after emerging from the meeting of the committee on Friday which lasted for over 12 hours.

“We had a very fruitful deliberation and of course you know it is a technical subcommittee of a committee.

“And at the level of the committee, we have reached near consensus, and by the time we go to the plenary we will have a complete agreement, and maybe from there, the media can start their job. As it is now I think we are better off than we were,” Uzodimma said.

According to him, the committee just concluded their various unit meetings and have now proceeded to the plenary where the committee is expected to harmonize their decisions and hopefully come up with a figure.

Recall that the organized labor had rejected the N60,000 proposal and went on a nationwide strike on Monday.

The action was however suspended on Tuesday after the Federal Government promised to increase the minimum wage to an amount bigger than N60,000 as they resume negotiations.

The meeting, which is the fifth since the suspension of the industrial action by organized labor, is held behind closed doors at the Nicon Luxury Hotel in Abuja.

Some prominent members of the committee are in attendance including the Director General of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF); the Minister of Labour and Employment (State) Nkiruka Onyejeocha, the Governor of Imo State Hope Uzodimma; a representative of the Salaries, Income and Wages Commission; the Minister of Finance Wale Edun as well as the Minister of Budget and National Planning Atiku Bagudu.

Meanwhile, the 36 state governors who make up the Nigeria Governors’ Forum have said that the N60,000 minimum wage proposal by the Federal Government is not sustainable and cannot fly.

A statement by the Acting Director of Media Affairs and Public Relations of the Forum, Mrs. Halima  Ahmed, noted that if allowed to fly, many states will use all their monthly allocations from the federation account to pay workers’ salaries.

The governors appealed to members of the tripartite committee to agree on a minimum wage that would be fair and sustainable.