Strong indications emerged on Thursday that the organised labour is spoiling for a major showdown with some of the states of the federation over the delay in the implementation of the N18,000 National Minimum Wage Act signed into law by President Goodluck Jonathan in March 2011.

The president of the Trade Union Congress, Mr. Peter Esele, told SATURDAY PUNCH on the telephone on Friday that the two umbrella labour bodies in the country would hold a crucial meeting to decide on the measures to ensure the implementation of the minimum wage not later than two weeks from now across the country.


The TUC leader said that labour leaders across the country were only waiting for the conclusion of the annual conference of the International Labour Organisation in Geneva, Switzerland, to address the “disturbing delay in the implementation of the act” almost three months after it became law.


He said that the organised labour would call a joint meeting of the leadership of the NLC and the TUC as soon as labour leaders attending the international conference arrived in the country this week.


Esele said that it would be wrong on the part of any group to attempt to tie the enforcement of the minimum wage, an act of the National Assembly, to a proposed review of the prevailing revenue allocation formula in the country.


He warned that labour would not wait for a review of the revenue allocation formula as a precondition for the payment of the minimum wage to Nigerians.


He said, “You see, the Trade Union Congress and the Nigeria Labour Congress are waiting for the ILO conference in Geneva, Switzerland, to take a decision on this issue.


“There are no two ways about it; we’re not going to wait for the review of any revenue allocation formula. It is unacceptable because the minimum wage issue is not a resolution of the National Assembly, it is an act.


“And I can tell you that before two weeks, a meeting of the two labour bodies will meet to fashion out the next line of action, and we will give directive to our state congresses to take the necessary measures to ensure the law is enforced. The conference will come to an end very soon and labour leaders will be arriving in the country this week. So, hopefully, the meeting will hold in less than two weeks.”


The acting general-secretary of the NLC, Mr. Owei Lakemfa, said that it was the belief of labour that all the states of the federation had the capacity to pay the N18,000 minimum wage.


He urged state governments to reduce the number of redundant advisers and aides and other frivolous expenses to ensure that the minimum wage law was not violated.


He challenged any of the 36 governors in the country, who supposedly lacked the ability to pay the new wage to make his case public, stressing that the NLC was ready to look into the income and the wage bill of such states to make a point that all the states in the country had enough fund to pay the N18,000 wage.


He admitted that while a majority of the governors had agreed to pay the new wage, a few of the governors were complaining about its implementation.


He said that implementation of the minimum wage was not dependent on the adjustment envisaged to the Revenue Allocation Formula, as public office holders increased their salaries by over 800 per cent in 2007 without a change in the formula for revenue allocation.


He insisted that the minimum wage was an act whose implementation was not negotiable, adding that the governors, as responsible people, would not violate a law of the land.


He said, “The Minimum Wage Act is a law signed in March 2011. Its execution is immediate and it took effect from when the President signed it into law. Those who have not paid are in arrears. We’re confident that they (the governors) will pay.


“It is not true that the governors have said that they will not pay. Some governors want a review of the revenue formula. We advise them to review the wage page of their government. We advise them to reduce the number of advisers and ensure that allocations to the states are handled prudently.


“The constitution is very clear on this issue. The implementation of the minimum wage is not dependent on any revenue allocation formula. When the wages of public office holders, elected officers were increased by over 800 per cent, they did not ask for the revenue allocation formula to be changed.


“All the state councils have been asked to tell their governors to pay the minimum wage because we will investigate the allocation, the wage and other expenses in the states.


“There is no state government that cannot pay the minimum wage. We don’t need to go to court. State governors cannot be lawless. Nigeria is based on law and the constitution. The minimum wage is not negotiable.”


The chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, Rotimi Amaechi, had said on June 3, 2011, that some states of the federation lacked the financial strength to pay the N18,000 minimum wage.


He had said that a review of the revenue allocation formula in the country would put the governors in a better position to pay the minimum wage.


The existing revenue allocation formula allocates 52 per cent to the Federal Government, 36 per cent to the states and 26.7 per cent to the local government areas.


Amaechi demanded a new revenue allocation formula as proposed by an NGF committee on revenue allocation headed by the Governor Raji Fashola of Lagos State.


Fashola, whose panel suggested a reduction of the allocation to the Federal Government, proposed 35 per cent for the Federal Government as against the present 52 per cent, and 42 per cent as against the states’ 36 per cent, and 23 per cent for the 774 LGAs, which receive 20.6 per cent from the Federation Account today.


“I don’t know which states have been able to implement the minimum wage. We’re not against it, but we’re saying that if you want us to implement it, the money is not there in the states,” Amaechi said.


“There are states that are receiving over N1bn and their salary is about N1bn. How will they manage? There are states that are receiving N2.5bn and if you have a minimum wage of about N4bn, how will they manage? Where will they get the N1.5bn to augment it?


“The thing is a bit challenging, but I think that when we meet with the President, the National Assembly, and the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, we will find a solution to it.


“There must be a solution that allows small money in the hands of state governors so that they can afford to pay this minimum wage.


“I’m not saying that it is impossible to pay this money. That is not what I said. I said that ability of the governors to pay this minimum wage will be enhanced if the revenue allocation formula is dealt with.


“It will be a huge challenge, they are willing to pay but they are trying to get the money. Some states have 2.5bn and they have to pay N4bn.


“Once there is a law, it has to be obeyed.”


Similarly, Governor Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, told some monarchs in Ibadan that the state’s total income of about N4.2bn per month would not be sufficient to pay the new wage.


He said that the state would be indebted to the tune of N200m for the new minimum wage to be paid every month.


However, Lagos State on Wednesday said it had decided to implement the N18,000 minimum wage for its workforce.

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Posted: at 18-06-2011 04:30 PM (12 years ago) | Gistmaniac

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