New Minimum Wage: some states inability to pay, Another phase of Struggle

 Olapade Gbolahan     

Nigerians were thrown into a mood of jubilation on 18^th of April 2019 as the long struggle on the New Minimum Wage was put to an end by President Muhammad Buhari as he signed and approved the minimum wage of #30,000 monthly.

There are a lot of significances to this story, the key significance is the feeling of fulfillment on the Nigerian Labour  Congress(NLC) as they fought bravely. The struggle for the new minimum wage started in 2011,in 2011 the minimum wage was #18,000 (US$110) which is now US$50 which is below the poverty line and the NLC claims it is the lowest in the continent.

After several meetings between the NLC  and the government ,the bill was  finally  passed in the national assembly, sent to president Muhammdu Buhari   on  the   27th   of march, for presidential assent on the 18th of April  after due consultation with national minimum wage committee.

The NLC  jubilated   and appreciated the president even though there have been a near unfavorable relationship between the pair due to constant strike threats, ultimatum to approve the minimum wage, and the NLC insisting on #30,000 when the government proposed #24,000.

It was really a battle won as the minimum wage was increased by 67% to (US$83) . In a country like Nigeria that is now renowned for having issues preventing big projects in Nigeria. The approval of the minimum wage had few issues that delayed it. It include the revelation that only 5% of the states could afford the #30,000 according to the states governors.

According to findings, 33 states out of 36 are late in paying workers salaries, and the states governors have come out to say they couldn’t afford it even after the minimum wage was approved by the president. The governors argued that there are no enough resources to cater for the new minimum wage. Due to this, civil servants are urging the state governments to implement the new minimum wage.

On the path of NLC ,it is another challenge, another struggle to achieve their cause, after their great victory. In recent statement released, NLC   revealed it would ensure all the states implement the new minimum wage.

So ,rather than the end of a struggle for the NLC on the minimum wage ,it is rather the beginning of another phase of the struggle.