The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has urged the 36 state governors in the country to reduce the high cost of governance and minimise corruption to pay workers a reasonable minimum wage.

The NLC said a miserable national minimum wage would portend grave danger to the economy of most states driven by workers’ salaries.

This was contained in a statement issued on Saturday by the union’s spokesperson, Benson Upah, in response to comments from the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) stating that states may have to borrow and exhaust their Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations in order to pay workers’ salaries every month.

While noting that prices of goods and services have increased by 400 per cent to the detriment of the poor occasioned by the government’s harsh policy decisions, the NLC added that FAAC allocations have since moved from N700 billion to N1.2 trillion at the expense of the people.

The union stated: “We are alarmed by the statement credited to the Nigeria Governors’ Forum that state governments cannot even afford to pay N60,000 as minimum wage as a few states will end up borrowing to pay workers every month.

“We do believe the governors have acted in bad faith. It is unheard of for such a statement to be issued to the world in the middle of an ongoing negotiation. It is certainly in bad taste.

“As for the veracity of their claim, nothing can be further from the truth as FAAC allocations have since moved from N700 billion to N1.2 trillion, making the governments extremely rich at the expense of the people.

Labour: Why we demanded N250,000 as minimum wage

“All that the governors need to do to be able to pay a reasonable national minimum wage (not even the N60,000) is cut on the high cost of governance, minimise corruption, as well as prioritise the welfare of workers.

“It is important to explain here that a national minimum wage is not synonymous with the different pay structures of different states. The national minimum wage is the lowest floor below which no employer is allowed to pay. The aim is to protect the weak and the poor.

“We are not fixated with figures but value. Those who argue that moving the national minimum wage from N30,000 to N60,000 is sufficiently good enough miss the point. In 2019, when N30,000 became the minimum, N300 exchanged for $1 (effectively making the minimum wage an equivalent of  $100 or thereabout) while inflation rate was 11.40.

“At the moment the exchange rate is at N1,600 to $1 while inflation hovers at 33.7% (40% for food). This puts the value of the minimum wage at $37.5 for a family of six. This is happening at a time costs of everything rose by more than 400% as a result of the removal of fuel subsidy. This is an extreme bad news for the poor.

“Paying a miserable national minimum wage portends grave danger to not only the workforce but the national economy as in truth, economies of most states are driven by workers’ wages.

“In light of this, we urge the governors to do a re-think and save the country from a certain death.”

The Star