National minimum wage: NMA wants all inclusive 29-man review committee

AS the Federal Government set to name the composition of the 29-man national minimum wage review committee; the Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) has called on the government to ensure that the committee membership cut across all professionals in the public sector.

The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, had disclosed during the submission of the Technical Committee on Palliative and Minimum Wage Report to the Federal Government last week that a 29-man committee, which will include three state governors and eight each from the Federal Government, Labour and the Organised Private Sector, which include Nigerian Employers Consultative Assembly (NECA), NACIMA, and Nigerian Small and Medium Enterprises Association; will be inaugurated to negotiate the new minimum wage.

The committee will also have a chairman, who should be a Nigerian of very good standing with no affiliation to any political party; and with knowledge of labour and public service experience. The secretariat of the committee will be domiciled in the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission.

In a statement released at the weekend in Abuja and signed by its President, Prof Mike Ogirima and the Secretary General, Dr Yusuf Sununu Tanko, the NMA said the committee should be all-inclusive and in particular, include all professionals in the public sector.

The statement said: “NMA is anticipating the membership of the 29-man committee on review of minimum wage in the country to cut across all professionals in the public sector. The working environment of all health workers must be safe as they risk being infected if the working tools are not optimal and up to date. The doctors await better management of our welfare.”

Besides the issue of minimum wage, the NMA also frowned at the deliberate delay in the constitution of various regulatory councils on health and management boards of all health institutions.

It said: “Many of our tertiary health centres today are being managed by ad hoc chief executives in acting capacities without recourse to appointing experienced hands already screened. This has prevented employment of all cadres of health professionals. NMA frowns at the ‘casualisation’ of the work force in our public hospitals.”

The association also frowned at the way chief executives of tertiary hospitals are being intimidated by reckless union activities by the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) and leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), adding that civility must be encouraged in hospital set ups.

It added: “The persistent delay in the release of the white paper on residency training programme is not acceptable and has lead to lack of resident doctors in most of the hospitals.
“The NMA commends the activities of the various committees on health in the House of Representatives in ensuring innovative bills that will ensure rapid and efficient health delivery.”