The 37-man tripartite committee on minimum wage inaugurated by the Federal Government has hinted it will reconvene its sitting by mid-April to continue its further negotiations and consultations on the new expected minimum wage to be announced by President Bola Tinubu come May 1, 2024. National Treasurer of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC Hakeem Ambali, who happened to be a member of the tripartite committee, made this known yesterday in Abuja.
According to Ambali the committee members are still collating and analyzing the reports received from the zonal public hearings and will soon come up with their final proposal.
Recall the committee had went round the six geopolitical zones to receive the reports from the public hearings held across the country between Wednesday, March 27, 2024 and Thursday, March 28, 2024.
It is expected that the minimum wage when it come to force will cushion the hardship of the removal of fuel subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit done by the present administration.
During the public hearings, different zones had proposed different amounts for minimum wage.
Accordingly, the South West zone had suggested N794,000; the North East proposed N560,000 as minimum wage; while the North West proposed N485,000; the North Central proposed N709,000; South South demanded N850,000 while the South East demanded N540,000.
Commenting on the outcome from the zones, Ambali said, “We have been compiling and analysing zonal reports.”
Meanwhile, when asked about the date pencilled for the next meeting of the committee, he simply responded, “Mid-April.”
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had through his Vice President Kashim Shettima, on January 30, 2024, set up the 37-member panel at the Council Chamber of the State House in Abuja to organise and come up with what is affordable for the government as the new minimum wage.
With membership cutting across federal, state governments, as well as the private sector, and organised labour, the panel is expected to recommend a new national minimum wage for the country.
During the inauguration, the Vice President, Kashim Shettima urged members to “speedily” arrive at a resolution and submit their reports for onward action as the current N30,000 minimum wage had expired at the end of March 2024.
Shettima said, “This timely submission is crucial to ensure the emergence of a new minimum wage,”
Recall in year 2017, the House of Representatives moved to amend the National Minimum Wage Act for a compulsory review in every five years.
