Downward review of workers’ salaries unacceptable, NLC tells Al-Makura

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Nasarawa State chapter, has reiterated that it would  oppose the downward review of workers’ salaries in the state.

The state governor, Umaru Tanko Al-makura, had, last month, constituted a committee to review the salaries of workers, of which it prescribed a 50 per cent cut in the state workers’ salaries.

The state chairman of the union, Abdullahi Adeka, said  this at the 5th quadrennil state delegate conference of the Nigeria Civil Service Union, in Lafia, on Thursday.

According to him, the labour pulled out of the salary review committee on the last day of its plenary when it became clear that the sole reason for the constitution of the committee was to cut workers’ salaries in the state.

He  said  that  workers in the state had  already sacrificed enough by losing promotions and annual increment  from 2012 till date.

Workers’ salaries cannot be reduced in the face of fuel price hike, inflation and its multiplier effect on the cost of living, more so that, there is an expection of an upward review of salaries at the national level”, he said.

He urged  workers to be law abiding while the union watches the next step to be taken, adding that it  had already told the state government to jettison its planned reduction of national minimum wage in the interest of industrial harmony.

He added that reduction of workers salaries has never happened anywhere in the world and Nasarawa State should not serve as a reference point in the face of inflation bedevilling the country.