By Junaid Abdullahi
The organised labour yesterday boycotted a meeting of the Tripartite Committee on National Minimum Wage (NMW) over what it termed the government’s insulting proposal of N48,000.
Recall that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) walked out of Wednesday’s meeting.
They argued that the offer, lower than the current augmented wage of N77,000, insulted Nigerian workers’ sensibilities and failed to meet their needs.
After the walkout, the Tripartite Committee on NMW, led by Secretary Ekpo Nta, attempted to reconvene the following day.
However, the labour negotiating team refused to attend, citing the government’s lack of seriousness and transparency.
Deputy President of TUC, Dr. Tommy Okon, emphasized that labour would not return to negotiations until the government presented a meaningful offer.
In response, the government, via Tripartite Committee Chairman Bukar Aji, pleaded with labour to resume talks, proposing a new meeting date of May 21.
The government expressed a willingness to shift grounds to conclude negotiations promptly before the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conference in Geneva, Switzerland.
