The organised labour has vowed to reject any ₦62,000 or ₦100,000 minimum wage proposal for Nigerian workers by the federal government.
In an interview on Channels Television on Monday, Chris Onyeka, Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), described such a proposal as a “starvation wage”.
Onyeka said labour won’t accept the latest government’s offer of ₦62,000, saying that its latest demand as the living wage for an average Nigerian worker remains ₦250,000.
Onyeka said, “Our position is very clear. We have never considered accepting ₦62,000 or any other wage that we know is below what we know can take Nigerian workers home. We will not negotiate a starvation wage.
“We have never contemplated ₦100,000, let alone ₦62,000. We are still at ₦250,000, that is where we are, and that is what we considered enough concession to the government and the other social partners in this particular situation.
“We are not just driven by frivolities but the realities of the marketplace, realities of things we buy every day: a bag of rice, yam, garri, and all of that.”
He said further that the one-week grace period given to the federal government to review its proposal last Tuesday, June 4, 2024, would expire by midnight on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.
According to him, organised labour would meet to decide on the resumption of the nationwide industrial action if the federal government and National Assembly fail to act on workers’ demands by tomorrow.
