New Minimum Wage: FG, Organised Labour Negotiations End In Deadlock

The ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and organised labour for a new minimum wage have ended in a deadlock.

It will be recalled that President Bola Tinubu had in January set up a tripartite committee consisting of the government, labour and private sector representatives to review the ₦30,000 minimum wage introduced by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) submitted a proposal for an ₦615,000 minimum wage to the Tripartite Committee, but the government has not accepted labour’s demand.

Speaking with The Punch, a top official of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the negotiations ended in a stalemate because the two parties were unable to reach a consensus on the new minimum wage.

He said that while organised labour was insisting on a minimum wage of ₦615,000, the government and the private sector were proposing between ₦60,000 and ₦70,000, resulting in a stalemate in negotiations.

The source, who asserted that he was not authorised to speak on the issue, said, “The government can go as high as ₦60,000 to ₦70,000 a month. But anything outside of that, for the government, is impossible.”