ABUJA (Sundiata Post) – Organised Labour leadership made up of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), will return in seven days to meet with President Bola Tinubu to continue discussion on the minimum wage.
This was disclosed by the NLC President, Joe Ajaero and his TUC counterpart, Festus Osifo after about an hour-long meeting with President Tinubu in his office in the President Villa.
The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, who briefed State House Correspondents alongside the labour leaders, described the meeting as a fruitful one.
She said: “It was a fruitful meeting, father, children meeting. I think we are hopeful that very soon everything will be resolved. Of course, when father and children talk, you know what it is. That’s just exactly what has happened. It took us almost an hour. I believe that it’s all for good.”
NLC President Joe Ajaero said the meeting wasn’t a negotiation but a discussion, but the agreement was reached on basic issues.
“In real sense, it wasn’t a negotiation but a discussion. We agreed to look at the real terms probably and reconvene in the next one week. So that’s where we are. Because we didn’t go down there to talk naira and kobo. At least there were some basic issues that we agreed on,” Ajaero further disclosed.
Asked if organised labour was still insisting on N250,000, Ajaero said: “I remember mentioning that we didn’t go into Naria and kobo discussion. Now the status quo in terms of the amount N250,000 and N62,000 remains until we finish this conversation.”
TUC President, Osifo, while responding to a question on what issues they agreed upon, said: “In the meeting, we tried to put the issues on the table. Issues that are bothering and biting Nigerians today, the economic difficulties and the value of the naira, how it has also eroded, how these have affected the prices of commodities and goods in the market.
“So, we tried to put these before Mr President because he is the president of the country, and the buck stops at his table.
“We have had all the conversations with all his agents, but today we said let us meet with the father of the country and have this conversation and make the argument that Labour always makes. We made all the arguments, the economic analysis, macro, micro, fiscal, and monetary issues.
“So, we put everything forward and at the end, the president made his remark as the president and we all agreed let’s go back, we will internalize it, we will have some conversations and by one week time, we will come back and we will continue the meeting.”
