President Muhammadu Buhari has said that the government will fully implement the N30,000 (about $98) new minimum wage for workers in the country.
Buhari, who was represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, at the 2019 May Day celebration on Wednesday in Abuja, said that the Federal Government was committed to the cause of improving the lot of every working Nigerian.
“In this regard, the New National Minimum Wage, which I signed into law a few days ago shall be fully implemented by my administration.
“Let me once again express my deepest appreciation to the leadership of the Nigerian Workers for the understanding showed during and after the negotiations of the New National Minimum Wage.
“We shall continue to provide the enabling environment, higher productivity, industrial peace and harmony as well as congenial atmosphere for effective collective bargaining amongst trade unions and employers, protecting fundamental rights and other lawful rights at work,” he said.
He said that the government would focus on the critical issues that will speedily improve the quality of lives and livelihoods of Nigerians.
“These include the building of infrastructure roads, and rail, reforming key driving sectors of the national economy in order to put the country on a sustainable path of economic growth and prosperity,’’ he said.
He added that the government was committed to changing the narrative in the power sector.
“Today that sector after it was privatised still remains challenged in delivering power to many Nigerian homes and businesses.
“We must as a matter of National importance rework and re-engineer the sector for much more effective performance.
“Workers shall be called upon to play greater roles in supporting the Government to attain these goals,” he said.
Buhari also said that industrial peace was central to economic stability, adding that every industrial disruption costs the national economy dearly in term of money and man hours.
He, therefore, urged all actors in the industrial relations system to be more circumspect, patriotic and ethical in the use of industrial actions as tools for resolving workplace crisis and addressing grievances.
In his address, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Ayuba Wabba urged the Federal Government to backdate the implementation of the N30,000 new minimum wage backdated to April 18, 2019, when it was approved.
Wabba lamented the unemployment rate in the country, the deplorable state of the nation’s textile industry and the power sector.
He called on the Federal Government to review the entire privatization exercise and come up with the best approach to deal with the challenges, adding that incompetent investors are responsible for the power sector privatization failure.
The NLC President added that the unions was against the planned subsidy removal on petroleum products and the upward review of the Value-Added Tax (VAT).
On the just concluded elections, Wabba appealed to the aggrieved politicians, who feel cheated not to overheat the polity, but engage the judiciary for justice.
The 2019 May Day has the theme ‘’Another 100 Years of Struggle for Jobs, Dignity and Social Justice in Nigeria’’.
GIK/APA