By Kassim Omomia
The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and its Trade Union Congress, TUC, affiliate, led by Ayuba Wabba, the NLC president are protesting a bill currently under consideration in the House of Representatives, which tends to remove minimum wage matters from the exclusive list to the concurrent, where states can now determine wages of their workers.
Recall that the Bill sponsored by honourable Datti Ahmed passed second reading and was referred to the ad-hoc committee on constitutional amendment.
The protesters who blocked the entrance to the National assembly, singing anti- labour songs and carrying various placards with such inscriptions as, ‘No to wage poverty, ‘Yes to Living wage’, noted that the Bill was a crime against workers as ell as humanity, in the sense that most sate governors are yet to implement the 30,000 new minimum wage law.
‘’ Bringing the determination of wage under the governors is a crime against workers and humanity” one of the protesters said.
Politicising minimum wage is a crime against workers – NLC
However, speaking during the protests, President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, explained that the Bill was uncalled for as the current situation in the country, whether, insecurity, bad economy, was not caused by Nigerian workers.
“In fact, Nigeria workers are the solutions to the problems of this country, and not the problems”.
He noted that the states were failing in every constitutional responsibility assigned to them, especially in security, and welfare matters to their workers and argued that the Bill will not see the light of the day.
The nationwide protests are against the Bill, to allow states to decide minimum wage.
The Bill seeks to remove wage matters presently on the exclusive legislative list to the concurrent, where state governors can now determine the wage of their workers
