N1 Million May Be Relevant: NLC President, Ajaero Considers N1m As Minimum Wage
President of the National Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero has proposed that the Federal Government should begin to look at the possibility of considering N1 million as the monthly minimum wage going by the rising cost of food and services.
The NLC president expressed this on Sunday in an interview with Arise Television.
Ajaero maintained that the new minimum wage must reflect the country’s economic conditions, since the dollar keeps rising against the naira, and other economic indicators worsening.
He reiterated that the initial N200,000 minimum wage proposal is no longer tenable, citing the soaring price of food items and inflationary pressure in the economy.
He added that the organised Labour is meeting with the Federal Government on Monday to discuss resolutions around the strike notice issued by the NLC and Trade Union Congress, TUC.
He said, “This N1 million may be relevant if the value of the Naira continues to depreciate; if the inflation continues to depreciate. The demand for Labour is equally dependent on what is happening in society.
“You will remember that by the time we contemplated N200,000, the exchange rate was about N900. Today, the exchange rate is about N1,400 or even more.
“Those are the issues that determine the demand, and they are equally affecting the cost of living, and we have always said that our demand will be based on the cost of living index.
“You’ll agree that a bag of rice is about N60,000 to N70,000. Foodstuff is getting out of reach. Now, will we get a minimum wage that is insufficient for transportation, even for one week?
“We have to factor in all these issues. And that will determine the federal government’s commitment to these negotiations,”.
Last week, the organized Labour issued a 14-day nationwide strike notice but President Tinubu’s government appealed to workers not to embark on a strike over the country’s economic condition.
Follow us for more stories.
Author
