The Nigeria Labour Congress said the government must accede to its demands on minimum wage based on practical realities in the country.
The NLC also faulted a statement by President Bola Tinubu during a meeting with some governors and members of the National Assembly on the occasion of the nation’s 25th Democracy Day anniversary.
Tinubu had said that the government would only be able to pay its workers what the country can afford.
“Senate president, deputy senate president, you will get a notice from me if I have changed my mind on minimum wage. We are going to do it — what Nigeria can afford, what you can afford, what I can afford. They ask you to cut your coat according to your size if you have size at all,” Tinubu had said.
But in his reaction, the spokesperson of the NLC, Benson Upah, in an interview with the press, described the president’s statement as a contradiction of his promise to pay a living wage.
“This will be in breach of his promise to pay a living wage which is superior to a minimum wage. Moreover, there is unanimity of opinion that government accede to the demand of Labour based on practical realities,” he stated.
