President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Comrade Joe Ajaero has said with the current economic realities, the new minimum wage of N70,000 approved by President Bola Tinubu in July 2024, may not be able to buy “tissue paper” in the next five years.
Ajaero gave the prediction during the maiden media parley with stakeholders in the Labour Employment, Productivity and Social Security Sector on Thursday in Abuja with the theme, “The Outcomes of Labour and Government in the Last One Year: Fostering Dialogue and Discussions on Key Labour, Employment and Productivity Issues, Success, and Projections.”
The Labour leader explained that the reason why organised labour had insisted on the reduction of minimum wage review from five to three years, was to ensure workers in Nigeria get fair wages in line with current economic realities per term.
Citing an example of Zamfara state which recently began to pay the last minimum wage of N30,000 only when negotiations for the new wage had been concluded, Ajaero said the reduction in the duration of minimum wage review would further help to address such attitudes by some states governments.
He said: “The next three years, some states will not pay minimum wage. I give you an example with one state, Zamfara State. It was after we had negotiated the N70,000 minimum wage that they started paying N30,000. They were paying N18,000 for the five-year duration of the N30,000 minimum wage.
“That was one of the reasons why we had to reduce the minimum wage review to three years. In the next five years, this N70,000 will not be able to buy tissue paper so I think there is a need for constant review of it to move with the economic realities of the moment.”
Commenting on the December 1 minimum deadline and strike notice to states yet to implement the new minimum wage, Ajaero clarified that although the situation was closely being analysed given the peculiarities of states including the different salary payment schedules, the action by labour would assume a state-by-state approach.
“We have to look at them one by one, take a state-by-state approach It’s not a general strike, It’s not a general issue.
“You can’t go and strike in states where they have complied. We’ll have a committee that is getting daily report on this and to advise them.
So It’s not like a strike called by the NLC at the national that you see everybody go on strike, No.”
Acting Chairman, Labour Association of Nigeria (LACAN), Patrick Abulu, explained that the parley was aimed at fostering “a deeper understanding of the issues affecting workers and employers and to explore ways in which we can work together to promote fair labour practices and improve the overall employment landscape in Nigeria.
“As your media partner, dear social partner, we appreciate your role in supporting to, in turn, amplify the voices of workers and employers and help to shape the narrative around labour and employment issues.
“Let us use this opportunity to engage in constructive dialogue, share knowledge and experiences, and identify solutions to the challenges facing our labour and employment sector.”
