The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) and Organised Labour, last Thursday, arose from a meeting on the contentious matter of a national minimum wage for the country, finally settling for N70,000 as the new monthly pay for the least-earning Nigerian worker. Although this is a lift from the previous minimum wage of N30,000 per month, it is a far cry from Labour’s last demand of N250,000 and an improvement on government’s last offer of N62,000.
In between, there had been skirmishes of sorts, strikes and threat of strikes, as both parties dug in and held their ground in tedious and baleful negotiations.
The new N70,000 wage then comes with a sweetener by way of the shortening of the mandatory wage review period from five to three years. This implies that another wage review will be due in 2027.
The FGN then made a commitment to massive investment in infrastructure and renewable energy which have the capacity to boost investments, economic competitiveness, jobs, standard of living and security in the country.
Government also promised to ramp up its Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative, which seeks to lower the cost of commuting for the populace and the haulage of goods, especially food, to Nigerians, by converting the bulk of mass transit vehicles to the use of CNG fuel, which is significantly cheaper than the conventional diesel and petrol.
More money is going into the acquisition of more CNG buses, government said.
The FGN also resolved to address the matter of the (four months) withheld salaries of members of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU).
Organised Labour said they approached Thursday’s meeting with government with a deep sense of patriotism and to ensure that Nigeria remains united and becomes more prosperous.
This is indeed the case, and Labour’s sheathing of the sword in its long face-off with the FGN over the plight of Nigerians under the crunch of spiralling inflation, despite unheeded demands, is indeed commendable.
This is because around the world, long face-offs between governments and labour are red flags which are considered indicative of economic strains, industrial and social discord and poor Investment climates, sometimes tending towards political tensions, to say the least.
Going forward, the FGN would do well to keep its promises of infrastructure upgrades to lift the economy from its current doldrums, resolve pending matters with professional groups and Labour Unions, including SSANU and NASU, be more forthright and transparent in its dealings with labour and larger society and interface more with stakeholder groups in the decision-making process.
