*Negotiations stalemate continues despite appeals
The leadership of the National Assembly attempted to prevent organized labor from proceeding with its planned industrial action, but their efforts were unsuccessful. A meeting held on Sunday with representatives from the Federal Government and labor unions ended in a deadlock.
The meeting, attended by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, and Secretary to the Government of the Federation George Akume, among others, lasted for over four hours at the Senate wing of the National Assembly Complex in Abuja.
The NLC Chairman, Joe Ajaero, and his TUC counterpart, Festus Osifo, along with other top executive members of the labor unions, arrived at the Senate wing of the National Assembly Complex. The meeting commenced approximately 50 minutes ago.
In attendance were also the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu; the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Nkiruka Onyejeocha; the Minister of Information, Muhammad Idris; the Minister of State; and the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi.
Briefing journalist at the end of the meeting, Akpabio stated, “The leadership of both chambers is aware of the tripartite committee established to negotiate with labor on the new minimum wage for the country. This committee is considering all variables, including the removal of the fuel subsidy and the time elapsed since the last minimum wage adjustment.”
“We recognize that these negotiations have taken considerable time. We acknowledge that, in its wisdom, the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu has implemented a temporary wage award of ₦35,000 for federal workers, pending the outcome of new minimum wage negotiations. We are also aware that several states have adopted similar measures, with varying amounts.”
“We are also aware that the NLC and TUC decided to call for a strike, commencing tomorrow (Monday).
“The leadership of both chambers decided to invite the NLC and TUC, along with senior government officials led by the SGF, to understand what happened and why the negotiations broke down. We strongly believe that a strike should be a last resort,” said Akpabio.
He appealed to the unions to suspend the strike, emphasizing the severe consequences: “When hospitals shut down, the most vulnerable will suffer. Patients reliant on oxygen and those in urgent need of medical care will be at great risk. The disruption will hinder the movement of goods and services, severely impacting productivity. Consequently, the living standards of Nigerians will decline significantly.”
Also speaking, Speaker Abbas said “There are three takeaways that we can go home with . One is that we have agreed to prevail on the government to revisit the issue of the 35k paid to Nigerian workers wage award that was started in October last year and stopped in February. We agreed that the wage award should continue until such a time that the minimum wage is agreed . We also agreed that the NLC and TUC should go and consult with a view to suspend their strike as soon as possible to allow for negotiations to continue,”
Also speaking, the Speaker of the House, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas stated, “There are three key takeaways for us. First, we have agreed to urge the government to revisit the issue of the ₦35,000 wage award given to Nigerian workers, which commenced in October last year but was halted in February. We have agreed that this wage award should continue until a new minimum wage is established. Second, we agreed that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) should consult with their members with the aim of suspending their strike as soon as possible, allowing negotiations to proceed.”
But addressing newsmen after the closed-door meeting which lasted for about four hours, the TUC President, Festus Osifo, said, “The Senate President appealed to us to call off the strike.
“But we can’t sit here and call off the strike because we have other organs. We will take the appeals to our various organs.
“We do not have the authority to call off the strike. For now, the strike will proceed as planned while we continue discussions with our leadership.”
