The Federal Executive Council on Tuesday postponed action on a memorandum concerning the report from the Tripartite Committee on the new national minimum wage.
According to The PUNCH, this move aims to facilitate further consultations among President Bola Tinubu, state governors, local government authorities, and the private sector, as explained by the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, during a briefing at the State House in Abuja.
Idris highlighted that the council decided to delay the memo’s consideration because the national minimum wage involves multiple stakeholders, not just the Federal Government.
He noted that the President must engage with various wage-paying entities to incorporate their input and circumstances into the executive bill, which will eventually be submitted to the National Assembly for legislative approval.
“I want to inform Nigerians here that the Federal Executive Council deliberated on that (minimum wage) and the decision is that because the new national minimum wage is not just that of the Federal Government, it is an issue that involves the Federal Government, the state governments, local governments, and the organised private sector and of course, including the organised labour.
“That memo was stepped down to enable Mr President to consult further, especially with the state governors and the organised private sector, before he makes a presentation to the National Assembly before an executive bill is presented to the National Assembly.
“So I want to state that on the new national minimum wage, Mr President is going to consult further so that he can have an informed position because the new national minimum wage, as I said, is not just an issue of the Federal Government,” Idris stated.
He added that President Tinubu has reviewed the report and will engage in broader consultations before making a final submission to the National Assembly.
The Tripartite Committee on the new national minimum wage, established in January, had proposed increasing the wage to N62,000 from the current N30,000.
This committee includes representatives from the government, organised labour, and the organised private sector.
However, the organised labour, represented by the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress have called for a N250,000 living wage.
The FEC’s decision came after NLC President Joe Ajaero expressed the expectation that President Tinubu would engage with the Tripartite Committee to reconcile the figures, especially following a deadlock at the committee’s meeting.
