Negotiations for new national minimum wage stall, workers face prolonged wait amid economic hardship

VANGUARD

There are strong indications that workers will wait longer to receive a new national minimum wage as negotiations have stalled amid excruciating economic hardship and mass suffering in the country.

In fact, the delay is allegedly caused by the Federal Government.

This came as Abia, Taraba, and Zamfara states are allegedly still in breach of the 2019 National Minimum Wage Act which fixed the minimum wage at N30,000 from the previous N18,000.

The implication of the stalled negotiations is that workers’ hopes for a pay rise ahead of the 2024 May Day scheduled for Wednesday have been dashed.

The new minimum wage should have taken effect on April 1, 2024, with the old regime having expired on March 31.

Meeting

Sunday Vanguard’s checks revealed that the last meeting of the Tripartite Committee on the New National Minimum Wage, TCNMW, tasked with fixing the new wage, was held in the first week of April where stakeholders received the reports of the public hearings across the six geographical zones held on Thursday, March 7, 2024.

It was, however, gathered that the subcommittees have been meeting on other issues as directed by the TCNMW.

According to findings, at the first week of April meeting, members of the committee, that is, the government, labour and private sector employers, were directed to submit their written proposals to the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission, NSIWC, which serves as the secretariat to the TCNMW.

Sources informed that while Organised Labour, comprising Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and its Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, counterpart, has sent in its demand of N615,000 minimum wages, the Organised Private Sector, OPS, has equally sent in its proposal.

However, it could not be confirmed if the government has sent in its proposal.

Reports

Sunday Vanguard gathered that after the TCNMW received the reports of the public hearings, the NSIWC fixed April 16 and 17 as meeting dates for a review of the reports and probably commence negotiations, but, unfortunately, the dates turned out to be public holidays for Sallah celebrations.

Since then, Sunday Vanguard learnt that it (NSIWC) has not fixed a new date for a meeting where the actual negotiations would start.

Blaming the government for the delay, one of the labour leaders, who is a member of the TCNMW, said until the government through the NSIWC summons a meeting, nothing could be done.

He said: “The last meeting was in the first week of April when we met to receive the reports of the zonal public hearings.

“It was essentially to collate reports from the zones. We as Organised Labour, that is, the NLC and TUC, have sent in a joint proposal or demand if you like.

“We are aware that the OPS has equally sent in its proposal. We are all waiting for the reconvening of TCNMW meeting to know what the government is putting on the table for us to begin negotiations.

“But that is not to say we have been doing nothing or we have been idle. The various subcommittees, in line with the mandate of the main committee, have been working. We have a lot to discuss and negotiate about.

“The hike in electricity tariff is now an important factor. We had sent in our demand before the increase in electricity tariff.

“To worsen matters, the increase was done without stakeholders’ inputs contrary to the enabling Act. In other words, we were not consulted as required by law.