Few days ago, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige stated that the new national minimum wage may not materialise in September as being speculated. Ngige disclosed that the date was just the time to conclude negotiation on the issue of minimum wage. According to him, the committee on the new wage was expected to conclude its work by the end of September and present its report to the government for deliberation and approval before an executive bill is sent to the National Assembly. The minister added that the issue of capacity to pay was also paramount in the deliberations on the minimum wage.
Ngige further said that in the course of the zonal public hearings, many state governments made different submissions ranging from N22,000 monthly to N58,000, adding that the governors were also of the belief that for the new minimum wage to become effective, the current revenue allocation formula would have to be reviewed in favour of the states and local government, even though some other states were also of the view that the minimum wage should be maintained at the current N18,000 in view of the inability of some states to pay the current wages.
Stating workers’ position, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, President of the Nigerian Labour Congress said that, the new national minimum wage demand of N66,500 ($184.87), was up from the N56,000 that had been currently on the table for some years. The Trade Union Congress’ President, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama also informed that 35 out of the 36 states of the Federation owe salaries and pensions. Nigerian public workers were excited when the Federal Government announced that it had constituted a committee to come up with proposals on a new minimum wage and palliatives that would cushion the effects of the recent hike in the price of fuel.
We recall that the Federal Government and the Nigeria Labour Congress set up a national committee to work out palliative measures and fashion out a new minimum wage that would ameliorate the impact of the increase in the pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit (petrol). Not long after the committee was constituted, there were conflicting media reports on its activities. Both the NLC and the Trade Union Congress, the two central labour organisations in the nation had proposed N56,000 as the new national minimum wage as against the current N18,000, which had been in operation since 2011. The law stipulates that any employer who has up to 50 workers on his/her payroll must pay the national minimum wage. There is every justification for an upward review of the minimum wage following the increase in the pump price because the adjustment has worsened the plight of workers such that their purchasing power has drastically reduced. Not only that, an increase in transport cost is making some of them to become truant at work. Apart from the high fares, the increment has rubbed off on virtually all the goods and services being traded in the country, which the current minimum wage cannot cope with. As a result of this, many government employees and their families are undergoing untold hardship, ranging from lack of food to their children’s withdrawal from school as fees cannot be paid promptly. Many people have turned to begging, criminality, heavy indebtedness and even suicide, as a result of the harsh economic situation facing the country.
As the debate intensifies on whether there should be minimum wage increase or not, those who are against the proposal had argued that the labour’s demand for a wage increase is unsustainable on account of the deplorable and prevailing economic situation in the country coupled with the sharp fall in the price of crude oil. On the other hand, those who support an increase in the minimum wage, however, hinged their reasoning on the grounds that those on the bottom rungs of the civil service salary ladder are among the poorest civil servants in the world and the N18,000 minimum wage was grossly inadequate to meet the basic need of the workers.
Then, the questions to ask are: Is it really feasible to increase the minimum wage payable to Nigerian workers? Is this realistic for both the federal and state governments to implement? Without further delay, the Federal Government should let Nigerians know how far the committee has gone in the provision on the blueprint on the palliatives and evolving of a living and sustainable minimum wage for workers. By that, the government will not only be sending the right signals that accountability is key to responsive governance; it is also shows clear commitment and sensitivity to workers’ agitation. We have to put smiles on the faces of Nigerian workers, this time around. Beyond increasing the minimum wage, the government should increase the purchasing power of workers so that what is earned can really be meaningful and take them home. Or, of what use is the salary that is meaningless? This is a task that must be accomplished by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.