Labour, under the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council (JNPSNC); Trade Union Side, the umbrella body of all the unions in the civil service and public service, is set for a total trade union action and strike, over the delay in the implementation of the N30,000 national minimum wage.
After the expanded meeting of the JNPSNC and its chairmen and secretaries in the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory, the council said it has already commenced mobilisation and sensitisation of all public service workers in the entire 36 states of the Federation “to prepare them for total trade union actions.”
Addressing the media after the meeting held in Abuja on Tuesday, the Acting Chairman of the JNPSNC, Trade Union Side, Comrade Achaver Simon and his Secretary, Comrade Alade Bashir Lawal said the negotiation between the labour side and the government side at the level of the Technical Sub-Committee, assigned to work out the consequential adjustment of salaries of public servants, has failed and deadlocked.
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The labour side and government side had differed on the percentage of increment to be added to salaries of officers from grade level 07 to grade level 17.
While labour earlier proposed upward salary adjustment of 66.6 per cent across the board, based on the actual percentage increase in the minimum wage; the government side rejected the proposal and argued that the wage bill will be too high for the government to bear.
Comd. Anchaver said: “consequently, the Trade Union Side of the JNPSNC reviewed its demand downward because the government promised to undertake a general salary review in no distant future. Labour then maintained that 30% increase should be effected in the salaries of officers on grade levels 07-14 and 25% to the salary of officers on grade level 15-17.
“Labour feels strongly that its demand is very much reductive bearing in mind new salary adjustment approved for some agencies of government whereby salary GL 01 step 1 officer win be going home with about N150,000.00 per month.
“On its part, the Government Side insisted that 9.5% salary adjustment for officers on grade levels 07-14 and 5% for those on grade levels 15-17 was the ideal. Both parties agreed to capture the two positions in its report to the plenary session of the larger Consequential Adjustment Committee for further discussion.”
He, however, added: “Surprisingly, when the Technical Sub-Committee reconvened the Government Side introduced a strange clause to the discussion insisting that the Term of Reference of the Committee was to work out the consequential adjustment of salaries of Pubhc Servants based on the subhead provided for salaries in the 2019 Budget.
“All efforts by the Trade Union Side to persuade the Government Side to return to the right track of negotiation and agree on a realistic percentage increase proved abortive;
“Thus, the Government Side deliberately created a stalemate and thereafter adjourned the meeting of the Technical Committee sine die. The negotiation therefore deadlocked ”
On their decision, Comrade Anchaver said: “The Federal Government should reconvene the meeting of the Technical Committee on Consequential Adjustment immediate|y so that it can conclude its deliberations and ensure that all Public Service Employees benefit adequately from the N30,000 new monthly National Minimum Wage signed into Law by Mr President since April 2019.
“That it has commenced mobilisation and sensitisation of Public Service employees in the entire 36 States of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, to prepare them for total Trade Union actions in the event that negotiation on the consequential adjustment arising from the N30,000 mount new National Minimum Wage completely breaks down.”
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