Photo: Wabba
The Organised labour has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately pass on the new National Minimum Wage Bill to the National Assembly.
Mr Ayuba Wabba, President of Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC) made the call at a protest rally in Abuja on Tuesday.
The National Executive Council of NLC had threatened to embark on a nationwide protest on January 8, if the Federal Government fails to send the Tripartite Committee Report on N30,000 Minimum Wage to NASS.
The organiseed labour gave the ultimatum following President Muhammadu Buhari’s statement that a “High powered technical committee,” would be set up to device ways to ensure that its implementation did not lead to an increase in the level of borrowing.
Wabba said the protest rally served as a warning to the federal government before a nationwide strike if government continued to delay the transmission of the Minimum Wage Bill to the National Assembly.
According to Wabba, workers welfare and well being must be paramount, that, “Was why we insist this rally must take place across the length and breadth of the country”.
“We want to say that workers are very central to economic development and very central to the prosperity of any country and therefore we cannot be described as the tiny minority.
“Workers are very productive, we built the Nigerian economy, we fought for democracy, rule of law and good governance and there is no way we can be described as tiny minority, as we service the entire country.
“So workers must be able to take care of their families, send their children to school, but today, workers are not able to feed three times a day or send their children to school.
“Because minimum wage of N18,000 is no longer realistic to take care of workers’ needs,’’ he said.