Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has vowed to lock down the country if the National Assembly dares to transfer labour matters including the national minimum wage, from the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent list in the on-going constitutional amendment.
Recall that there is a move by the National Assembly to alter the labour law to allow states determine their minimum wage and broader labour-related policies as they deem convenient.
NLC President, Joe Ajaero, while addressing members of the Central Working Committee, during a National Administrative Council meeting held in Abeokuta, Ogun State on Friday, warned that any move to alter the provisions of the constitution regarding labour matters, would be vigorously resisted by labour.
Ajaero who described the move as “an exercise in futility,” argued that “the national minimum wage is a universally-recognized standard supported by International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions, which treat countries — not sub-national entities — as the unit of accountability on labour issues.”
He further alleged that the proposed constitutional change is part of a broader effort by legislators to “bastardize” Nigeria’s national labour framework.
This, he said, includes shifting responsibilities for labour matters to individual states and allowing for the creation of state-level industrial courts to handle wage-related disputes — a development he warned would violate ILO principles.
“The National Assembly should not go into this exercise in futility unless members will also allow their respective states to determine their wages.
“If they attempt to smuggle labour matters into the concurrent list, we will mobilize workers to protest against it, even up to election day,” the labour leader said.
Addressing newsmen later, Ajaero reaffirmed the NLC’s readiness to resist any attempt to erode national labour protections.
The NLC boss urged lawmakers to respect international best practices and the rights of Nigerian workers.
“All over the world, there is a minimum wage for the protection of workers. In Nigeria, there is legislation for a minimum wage of N70,000. The law permits states to pay more than that, and in fact, many states currently pay above the minimum wage”
