Minimum wage’s retrenchment threat: FG should be ready for war —Labour

The Organised Labour, comprising the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) declared on Saturday that they are going to war with the Federal Government over the continued delay in the implementation of the new national minimum wage; and the recent threat by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, that the government would have to retrench workers to implement Labour demand on the N30,000, consequential adjustments for Grade Level 7 to 17.

Labour said they are ready with their “armoury and ammunition,” for war and that the government should be ready, adding that following the deadline and the October 16 ultimatum given to the government, “there is nothing to talk about, we are not prepared to trade in words with anybody.”

The Secretary General of TUC, Comrade Musa-Lawal Ozigi, and the President of NLC, Ayuba Wabba, who spoke to Sunday Tribune, said the minister of Labour was on his own, and merely expressing his own position that the government would sack to implement Labour demand on the new minimum wage consequential adjustments.

To the TUC scribe, there is no need at this point to ask labour if they are already mobilizing or not, warning that the minister and the government would see when the deadline expired and have refused to address their demand and the impending crisis.

He also pointed out that labour had already expressed its position to President Muhammadu Buhari and the Vice President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, and would see what becomes of the situation when the date expired.

Comrade Ozigi said: “Somebody says he is going to war, he didn’t say I am thinking of going to war. He said he is going to war on the so, so date and you are asking if he has armoury or ammunitions. Let the day of the war come, whether we are mobilizing or not, they would see.

“There is nothing to talk about, we are not prepared to trade in words with anybody. We have expressed our position even to the president and to the vice president. Fortunately, the minister was also there. If they think we are playing, well the days have not expired, let’s see when the days expired, and what shall become of them. But I know they will not leave it to pass-by because they know what we can do.”

On the threat of sack of workers by the government to enable it implement labour demands, he described such as a mere hear-say and a personal opinion of the minister which doesn’t represent the official government position.

The Secretary General said: “As far as we are concern, the statement being credited to the Labour Minister is a hear-say. If it is the official statement of the government, let him present it in our meeting, then we will give them our response. So, to us, Ngige is just talking as a person. When he wants to present that position as a minister, let him present it before the committee that we are going to meet, and if they like, they should not do anything before the date given.

“We are not even ready to respond to them.  Let them present that position on the floor of the house of the meeting, then, we will also give them our response. All these fake threats are nonsense, it is a gimmick.”

Comrade Wabba also said the minister was expressing his personal position, and challenged him to come with empirical data, facts and figures to confront the workers.

Comrade Wabba said: “That is his position, that is why I made reference to empirical data. Empirical data means that you have historical background. In fact, let me make the point that we have had minimum wage from 1981 to date. Let us interrogate the data and speak from the point of information, not from the point of sentiment and lack of clear information and that is the position of Labour.

“If you want argument about the facts and empirical data, we are ready to do that. There are facts and figures that can point to that. What we are demanding is something that is reasonable and there is nothing out of point for workers to demand. That is why in industrial relations parlance, it is about collective bargaining process, come with your facts and figures, and let us come with our facts and figures and let the issues be addressed instead of making statements that are in-coherent and not addressing the issues.”

He pointed out that the organised labour had resolved after the meeting of the NLC and TUC leadership with the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council, to put an end to the process, insisting that every social dialogue and negotiation must have an end.

The NLC President said: “We had a discussion with the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council and we thought that we should have an end to every process. Every process of social dialogue, every process of negotiation, must actually have an end.”

Wabba added: “These issues have lingered, and them like there is no way out of it and therefore we need to draw attention that these issues must be addressed and you cannot address them without bringing the people to the round table.

“We have said that the meeting must be conveyed towards addressing the issues to the logical end. I think that is the best way in industrial relations and that is why we have come together as organised Labour to look at the issues.

“This is not the first time we are doing minimum wage, we have a lot of empirical data to point to what is the consequential adjustment. This issue started in 1981, so there is a lot of information out there for people to come and muddle up information as if this is a new issue, this is not a new issue.

“This is also the first time we are now trying to rigmarole to pay levels 3, 4, 5 and 6, and leave the majority because people that are being paid are very minimal. In the Federal Civil Service, level 1 and 2 have been outsourced, remaining levels 3, 4, 5 and 6; they are actually in minority. So, we must have a situation where this can impact on all the workers, we go to the same market, both junior and senior workers go to the same market.

“So, these are issues that can be resolved on the table and Labour is ready for dialogue to address the issue to its logical conclusion. At the end of the day, we want you to realize that the workers, who have been on a fixed income, have been at the receiving end. The cost of goods and services have gone up but salary have remain same.”