According to Minister of Information Mohammed Idris, the leadership of Organized says that the Federal Government, FG and Labor have decided on ₦70,000 as the new minimum wage for workers in Nigeria.

The minister stated that the agreement was made during a meeting that took place on Thursday in Abuja between President Bola Tinubu and the leaders of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC).

Read Also: June 12: Tinubu Assured Nigerians of a New Minimum Wage; NASS To Get Bill Soon.

It gives us great pleasure to declare that the Federal Government and Organized Labor have decided to raise the N62,000 minimum salary.

Mr. President is set to present the National Assembly with a new national minimum of ₦70,000, an ecstatic Idris informed State House media.

The minister was flanked by Nkiruka Onyejeocha, the minister of labor, Festus Osifo, the head of the TUC, and senior officials from both parties.

‘Wage Review to Occur Every Three Years’ Regarding the minimum wage, Ajaero affirmed that they were at ₦70,000.

He added that one topic of discussion was that the minimum wage will no longer be reassessed every five years.

It was agreed upon, he said, that the minimum wage would now be reassessed every three years.

Ajaero declared that the Organized Labor would confer with their subscribers on the ₦70,000 mark.

‘A week ago, we were here. And at this moment, we’re here. We are currently at the point where they have announced receiving ₦70,000. However, we will not delay for a further five years to reach a consensus,’ Ajaero stated.

Regarding her own part, Onyejeocha stated that Tinubu had also instructed the Ministers of Finance and Budget, Wale Edun and Atiku Bagudu,

to determine procedures for resolving the disputes with the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU).

The President and labor leaders held a series of discussions prior to the two sides ‘agreement.’

recent weeks following months of fruitless negotiations between labor organizations and a tripartite committee on minimum wage, which the president established in January.

Labor insisted on ₦250,000 as the new minimum wage for workers who currently earn ₦30,000, but the committee,
which included state and federal governments as well as the Organized Private Sector, had offered ₦62,000.

Following the President’s elimination of the gasoline subsidy, Labour had stated that ₦30,000 was unaffordable for any worker given the economic whims of inflation and rising living expenses.

The President urged reasonable expectations for the minimum wage at his meeting with labor leaders on Thursday. ‘You must cut your coat to fit the cloth that is available.

Prior to the minimum wage procedure being finalized, Tinubu had stated, ‘We need to examine the structure.’

The President said on June 12, 2024, during his Democracy Day speech that the National Assembly will soon be presented with an executive measure pertaining to a new national minimum wage for workers for passage.

The “agreed” amount of ₦70,000 will be shared with the National Assembly in the upcoming days, the Minister of Information confirmed on Thursday.

Let us first commend Labour for their tenacity. Given the state of the population, we hope that it will be an ongoing process.

We’re hoping they’ll reach a point where the inflationary trend is nearly offset by the minimum wage.

We think that the government should try its hardest to lower inflation in this regard. We believe that the government isn’t doing enough to reduce spending.

FG and Labor Reach a ₦70K Minimum Wage

My perspective has always been that way. Therefore, that issue might continue. We applaud them if they have come to an agreement on wage as it is a numerical value.

However, the amount won’t be sufficient for people to survive on until inflation falls to a manageable level. It won’t yield a livable income, he said.

The LP Presidential campaign spokesperson, Yunusa Tanko, voiced caution,

stating that the goal of offering a better income will be undermined if the government does not act swiftly to alleviate the nation’s economic difficulties.

It’s not about a pay raise, he declared. It concerns bringing down the expense of living standards. At one point in time, we were receiving a salary of N15,000.

However, keep in mind that a bag of rice could be purchased for nearly N1,500 at that time. You may provide N5,000 to N7,000, or even less, for your family’s food with N15,000.

‘As it is, a bag of rice cannot be purchased with the new minimum pay of N70,000. And what about the vaccinations you need to give your kids in case they get sick?

And how much do school fees and transportation cost? What about education and all that other stuff? All you are doing is incentivizing government employees to steal more.