By Mumini AbdulKareem
The Joint Labour Congress in Kwara state has shelved the proposed strike action over the negotiations of payment 30, 000 naira minimum wage by the Kwara State Government.
This is just as the 14 days ultimatum issued to the government elapsed today.
In a press release jointly signed by the State chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Alhaji Issa Ọrẹ, his Trade Union Congress (TUC) counterpart, Kolawole Olumoh and the chairman of JNC, Saliu Suleiman, issued to newsmen on Wednesday in Ilorin.
The statement said the negotiation committee on the minimum wage of 30,000 naira has concluded their discussion but are yet to sign the agreement for proper perusal of the document, to avoid amputated table.
“This is to inform the Kwara State workers that the negotiation committee on minimum wage of N30,000 has concluded their discussion but are yet to sign the agreement due to the fact that the labour side wants to peruse the content of the agreement to avoid amputated table.
“In view of this favourable agreement reached has decided to shelve the proposed strike with immediate effect in ratifying the whole process for the benefit of Kwara State workers.
“Workers are hereby encouraged to be diligent and support labour activities in the state”, the statement added.
Labour unions in the state had rejected the proposal of the Kwara State government on the new minimum wage and issued the government 14 days ultimatum to either implement the new wage or face industrial action.
The unions and government have been locked in protracted negotiation which lasted for days but failed to reach consensus on the matter until the latest development.
President Muhammadu Buhari early in the year okayed the new wage and subsequently signed it into law for federal workers across the country.
Since the president action, labour had vowed to picket states that reneged to implement the new directive.
Most of the disagreements had centred on the consequential adjustment with the national leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) accusing state governors of shunning welfare of workers and implementation of the new minimum wage while wasting public funds on weddings, funerals and private jets.
Both the national leaderships of the TUC and NLC issued January 31st, 2020 and December 31st, 2019 as deadlines for the state to implement the new minimum wage, both dates which had already lapsed.
