Minimum Wage: Labour Demands Five-Month Arrears From FG

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has made fresh demand from the Muhammadu Buhari administration on the new minimum wage.

The TUC, on Tuesday, asked the federal government to pay five months arrears of the new minimum wage beginning from April 28, 2019, when President Buhari signed it into law.

The union’s demand is coming four days after a body it belongs to, the Joint National Public Service Council, reached an agreement with the government on the new wage. 

The labour unions and the federal government had decided on 23.2 percentage increase for workers at grade level 07; 20 per cent for those at grade level 08; 19 per cent for workers at grade level 09; 16 per cent for those at grade levels 10 to 14; and 14 per cent for workers at grade levels 15 to 17.

But the TUC, in a statement on Tuesday by its acting Chairman, Anchaver Simon, and the Secretary, Alade Lawal, asked the government to stick to their agreement on review of public servants’ wages in order to avert another round of agitation by the workers and their trade unions.

“We are also glad that the government has taken note of the need for a general salary review in the public service.  We are looking forward to this review and we hope that the Federal Government will keep to its promise which was made during the negotiation of consequential adjustments,” said TUC.