The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has accused some governors and lawmakers of backing a bill seeking to remove the National minimum wage from the exclusive list to the concurrent legislative list.
The Congress said it planned to mobilise its affiliates to campaign against all political office holders linked with anti-workers’ legislations and policies ahead of the 2018 and 2019 general elections.
Reacting to the move, NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, said all over the world, minimum wage is on the exclusive list. “We are talking about protecting the most vulnerable group that is the principle and philosophy. It is an ILO core issue under decent work agenda. It is a core ILO issue that all countries are conformed to,”
Wabba said that millions of Nigerians who were self-employed and those working in the private sector will be subjected to undue exploitation if the national minimum wage is removed from the exclusive list to the concurrent list.
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“It is a core ILO convention and in many countries of the world, including capitalist economy. As capitalist as the United Stated (U.S.) is, they have a minimum wage law.”
According to him, it is not the state government. It is all employers of labour generally, both private and public.” So, for public sector, who fixes their own? That is why it is a tripartite issue. I think that there is a level of ignorance he has demonstrated in this without even knowing what minimum wage law is all about.”
Wabba disclosed that the Labour unions condemn the action in its entirety. “We are going to respond immediately and effectively. Two, let him also go back to the archives. This issue was introduced even by some cabals within the Governors’ Forum at the last constitution amendment and it was defeated.”
Speaking further, the NLC helmsman said the implication of the proposed bill if accepted will be that workers will be exploited. “Assuming the alteration bill sells through in the National Assembly, what will organised labour, especially the leadership of the NLC, do? It will not said through because we will stop it at all cost. Nigerian workers will not accept this.”
The controversial bill which scaled through the first reading before the House embarked on Easter recess, was proposed by Ayeola Abayomi Abdulkadir (APC-Lagos), and it seeks to alter the Second Schedule, Part 1 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) by deleting item 34 from the exclusive legislative list and renumbering the existing item 35 as item 34 and subsequent items accordingly.