How we arrived at N200,000 minimum wage — NLC President

Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) President, Comrade Joe Ajaero

How we arrived at N200,000 minimum wage — NLC President

The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Comrade Joe Ajaero, has said the union got about 90% of its demands through negotiations that preceded the recent strike suspension.

Recall that the Organised Labour, last Monday, suspended the proposed indefinite strike over the removal of petrol subsidy and disagreement with the government over palliatives to cushion the effect of the policy.

The strike suspension triggered a backlash from some Nigerians who accused labour of selling out to the Tinubu administration.

In an interview with Vanguard, Ajaero explained how the NLC arrived at N200,000 it proposes as new minimum wage expected to be negotiated next year.

He said, “the essence of every negotiation is to reach an agreement that is enforceable and implementable. So when negotiations start, unless there is any stalemate, its whole essence is for an agreement. When we started, we had our demands, it’s not by force that demands must be met hundred percent. I know that we got ninety percent of our demands and there was nothing left for us than to sign an agreement. To negotiate without signing an agreement makes the agreement incomplete. So, that was it.

“We demanded for CNG as an alternative to petrol, we have plans towards attainment that because it can’t be achieved the following day or in one week. So, plans were laid down for it, we insisted that the refineries must work.

“We are aware the refineries won’t work the following day, plans were on ground for us to even go and inspect what’s happening in the Port-Harcourt refinery to make sure that it is completed and come into stream by December. We asked for wage award, the President offered N25,000 for the least-paid worker in Nigeria for just six months and we said no, we got for every person across board.

“We got the six months ceiling removed and we equally moved the N25,000 the President announced in a nationwide broadcast to N35, 000. That one has gone beyond what you may think is hundred percent and almost all other issues.

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The NLC President said going by the current economic realities in the country, the least paid worker in Nigeria should earn a minimum of two hundred dollars per month.

“That’s not even up to ten dollars a day. I am not talking of ten dollars per hour , it’s not up to ten dollars a day. So, if you even put it at seven dollars a day, that was at the international… But even if you bring it to the cost of living index and then you decide to situate it; look at transportation, if we assume that a worker doesn’t have a car, we assume he will enter three drops to work, we assume that he will enter three drops back, N2,000 is settled minimum if he doesn’t enter bike to get to where he is living because none of our workers lives in the city centre.

“Now, if you look at this N2,000 for thirty days, you are seeing almost N60,000 or even N50,000 if you want to remove the weekend. You look at his accommodation. Since he’s living in the fringes, you can give him close to N20, 000, if he must live in two two-room apartments or whatever in a decent place for him and his family, that one is settled. Now you look at feeding. Even if you put him on one loaf of bread, husband and wife with four children, one loaf of bread in the morning, no tea, no sugar, situate it about N1,000. You look at their lunch, even if you give them N200 per lunch, you are going to get another N1,000. You can equally look at their dinner at N200 without meat, for thirty days, that is almost N3,000.

“For thirty days, you have about N90,000. If you add N90,000 to almost N60,000 we already have about N150,000. Now, I am not talking about school fees. If you look at school fees for four children, even if they are in kindergarten, there is no way you will not have almost N200,000. Now if divide that N200,000 by three months and that makes up a term, you will be having about N65,000.