JUST IN: FG didn’t agree N30,000 minimum wage with Labour – Ngige

Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja

The Federal Government has denied entering into an agreement with the organised labour to increase the minimum wage from N18,000 to N30,000.

President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba, was quoted to have said that the Federal Government and the Labour leaders had agreed on N30,000 as the new minimum wage which will soon be announced.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, state the government side, on Wednesday, while briefing State House Correspondents after the meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting.

The Labour minister was responding to media reports quoting Wabba on the new minimum wage.

“Such information is not true,” Ngige said.

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The Minister said when the committee reconvened on October 5, after the NLC had called off its nationwide strike, “the organised labour came down to N30,000, the organised private sector came down to N25,000”.

Ngige also said the government had to consult with the 36 state governors and after the consultations, the FG proposed N24,000, while governors proposed N20,000.

He said the government was still consulting and negotiations is ongoing.

The minister stressed that in accordance with Convention 131 of International Labour Organisation, the most important thing to consider in fixing the new minimum wage is the ability to pay.