Labour justifies N56,000 minimum wage demand

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Friday justified its demand for N56,000 minimum wage for workers in spite of the poor economic situation in the country.

Addressing a news conference in Abuja ahead May 1 Workers’ Day celebration, Mr Peter Adeyemi, Chairman, Planning Committee for the celebration, said that current N18,000 minimum wage was no longer reasonable.

He said that the prevailing wage could not sustain Nigerian workers because of present cost of living, and insisted that salary review was "very necessary now’’.

Adeyemi said that the exchange rate of naira to dollar had had its toll on the nation’s economy as the naira was now exchanging at N321 to a dollar.

He recalled that when labour negotiated for N18, 000 minimum wage in 2011 the naira was exchanging at N145 to a dollar.

"You can imagine what Nigerian workers are experiencing now that the dollar is exchanging for N321; you can now see the reasons we are demanding for N56, 000.

"We have done what we needed to do by submitting the proposed N56,000 minimum wage and if we secure it, I think life will be better for every civil servant because what we are asking for is realistic,” he said.

He said that the union was not unaware of the inability of some states not complying with the payment of N18,000 minimum wage and assured that the congress would go after them.

On the shelved warning strike over high electricity tariff, he said that the union was still negotiating and that the strike option was still on the table.