The National Assembly will get an executive bill on the new national minimum wage on Tuesday, following an agreement reached between President Bola Tinubu and labour groups on increased worker pay.
The President, the Nigeria Labour Congress, and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, led by their presidents, Joe Ajaero and Festus Osifo, respectively, decided on N70,000 as the new national minimum wage at their meeting on Thursday at the Aso Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The wage will replace the N30,000 minimum wage, which expires on April 18, 2024.
To give the deal constitutional backing before it is implemented, Bayo Onanuga, President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, revealed to one of our correspondents that lawmakers would receive the executive bill on the new minimum wage by Tuesday.
He said, “The minimum wage will reach the National Assembly by Tuesday. He (President Tinubu) told Labour in the meeting that it would be ready by Tuesday.”
Announcing the new wage benchmark, Tinubu said, “I have heard all your presentations. You came here with the intention of getting something on behalf of your members. If you review my track record, I have never been found wanting to ameliorate the problems of workers. I belong to the people and all of you in leadership.
“We are driving this economy together. Let us look at the tenure of the review. Let us agree on that and affirm three years. Two years is too short. We affirm for three years. We will review it.
“I am going to move from the tripartite committee. I am going to edge a little bit forward, looking at the review that we have done. Yes, no one in the federal establishment should earn less than N70,000. So, we are going to benchmark at N70,000.”
Following a debate among stakeholders, the President received two separate figures from the Tripartite Committee on the New National Minimum Wage, which was established in January.
While the government and organised private sector recommended N62,000, organised labour requested N250,000.
After receiving the committee’s report, the President requested extra time to confer with relevant parties and harmonise the data before submitting an executive bill to the National Assembly.
