Nigerian governors have said that the proposed N60,000 minimum wage for workers is too high and not affordable.
On Friday, the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) released a statement through Halimah Ahmed, the Director of Media and Public Affairs.
The governors explained that if they have to pay the new wage, many states will use all their funds from the Federal Account Allocation Committee just to pay salaries. This would leave no money for other important projects.
The statement said, “The Nigeria Governors’ Forum is in agreement that a new minimum wage is due. The Forum also sympathises with labour unions in their push for higher wages.
“However, the Forum urges all parties to consider the fact that the minimum wage negotiations also involve consequential adjustments across all cadres, including pensioners. The NGF cautions parties in this important discussion to look beyond just signing a document for the sake of it; any agreement to be signed should be sustainable and realistic.”
The NGF added, “The N60,000 minimum wage proposal is not sustainable and can not fly. It will simply mean that many states will spend all their FAAC allocations on just paying salaries with nothing left for development purposes. In fact, a few states will end up borrowing to pay workers every month. We do not think this will be in the collective interest of the country, including workers.”
The governors asked everyone involved in the wage talks, especially the labour unions, to consider all the economic factors and come to a fair and sustainable agreement.
They said, “We appeal that all parties involved, especially the labour unions, consider all the socioeconomic variables and settle for an agreement that is sustainable, durable, and fair to all other segments of the society who have a legitimate claim to public resources.”
Beyond Boders recalls that labour groups, including the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), had stopped their strike after the government promised a higher minimum wage.
The government said that President Bola Tinubu is committed to a wage higher than N60,000.
This discussion came after the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, presented the cost implications of a new minimum wage to the President.
The governors agreed that a new minimum wage is needed, but it must be one that states can afford.
