By Lucy Osuizigbo
Awka – Anambra State Government says it has concluded arrangements to pay N30, 000 as the new minimum wage for workers in the state beginning from January, 2020.
The decision was arrived at after series of meetings and discussions between the state government and Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JNC) on the payment of new minimum wage to public sector workers on Friday.
The Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Solo Chukwulobelu, told newsmen after the meeting that an agreement had been reached on the implementation of the new minimum wage.
“After series of meetings with the organised labour, we are pleased to announce that today, we have reached an agreement on the implementation of the new minimum wage and the consequential adjustments with effect from Jan. 1, 2020, ” he said.
Earlier, Mr Ijemba Jibike, State Chairman of JNC, said necessary terms of settlement and agreement were reached at the end of the meeting.
“The National Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (NJPSNC) and the Federal Government’s Negotiations and Consequential Adjustment of Salaries had produced the following figures on Consolidated Public Service Salary Structure (CONPSS):
“GL. 01-06=N30,000; GL. 07=23.2 per cent; GL. 08=20 per cent; GL. 09=19 per cent; GL. 10-14=16 per cent and GL. 15-17=14 per cent’’.
Jibike, however, said that the state government had agreed to pay N30,000 as the new minimum wage.
“Gov. Obiano is a product of the service and he understands how to administer the needs of workers in the state.
“He will be the first governor that has ever negotiated the payment of minimum wage regime to workers in the state.
“Today, he has created a template upon which governors coming after him will work with.
“This document we have signed today is a working document that we can refer to in our subsequent negotiations.
“There is a provision in the new minimum wage document that as we work hard to improve the Internally Generated Revenue (IGR), the salary regime will also improve.
“So, we are satisfied and we thank the state government,” he said.
Jibike promised that the public service workers would assist the government to improve the revenue profile of the state,” he said.
(NAN)
