New Minimum Wage Implementation: Labour Leader Speaks on Possibility of Nationwide Strike

• The TUC president, Festus Osifo, has explained that the organised labour is not currently contemplating a nationwide strike
• Legit.ng reports that Osifo said it would be unfair to embark on a national strike because a few states have already started implementing the new national minimum wage
• In an interview on Tuesday, December 3, the labour leader stated that the present focus of his colleagues is on those states that are not implementing a minimum wage

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Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering public affairs and governance.

FCT, Abuja - Despite the non-implementation of the new minimum wage by some states, Festus Osifo, president of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), has said the organised labour will not strike.

Osifo, also the president of PENGASSAN, spoke in an interview on Arise TV on Tuesday, December 3, monitored by Legit.ng. According to the labour leader, embarking on strike would be unfair on (sic) states that have shown genuine commitment to paying the N70,000 approved by the federal government for the least-paid worker.

Minimum wage: ”We don’t envisage strike" - Labour

Asked about the possibility of a strike, Osifo replied:

”We don’t envisage a nationwide strike as at today because it is not really proper for you to go on strike in a state that is implementing the minimum wage. So, our concentration today is on those states that are not implementing a minimum wage.

“For us, the ones that have not started at all are about two or three.”

Watch the full interview below:

Findings by Legit.ng show that almost all the states have made a commitment to the new minimum wage which will see them pay the N70,000 approved by the federal government for the least paid worker.

However, in many states, the problem lies with the adjustments to be made to the salaries of other categories of workers. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) demands that such adjustments be reached after negotiations between the government and labour unions, while many governments only want to implement arbitrary increases.

Minimum wage: Nasarawa to pay N70,500

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the Nasarawa government reached an agreement with the NLC to pay N70,500 to the state's workers as minimum wage.

Ismaila Okoh, the NLC chairman in Nasarawa state, disclosed the update regarding the agreement, according to media reports.