The federal government has said the N30,000 figure proposed by the tripartite committee for the new national minimum wage is a mere recommendation, which is subject to approval or adjustment by the president.
This is contained in a statement released on Friday by Illiya Rhoda, an assistant director in the ministry of labour. She asked those who are not pleased with the new minimum wage to lodge their complaints with the national assembly.
Illiya noted that President Muhammadu Buhari considered the report of the committee in full, and that the council of state considered the economic status quo before arriving at N27,000.
The president had, against the N30,000 recommended by the tripartite committee, transmitted a minimum wage bill containing N27,000 to the national assembly after its approval by the national council of state.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has since rejected the N27,000 minimum wage.
“At the expiration of the last National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act, which was enacted in 2011, Mr. President constituted and inaugurated a Tripartite Committee on National Minimum Wage (TCNMW) in November, 2017, to consider the issue and recommend a new National Minimum Wage to the Government,” the statement read.
“The constitution of the Tripartite Committee was in consonance with the provisions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention Nos. 26, 99, and 131, as well as the guidance provided by the accompanying Recommendations.
“It is very important to note that the constituted TCNMW was mandated by Mr. President to deliberate on the issue of a review of the National Minimum Wage and make recommendations for its upward review.
“The output from the TCNMW was therefore never meant to be sacrosanct but to provide a guide for the Competent Authority (The Government) to take a final decision.
“The Report of the TCNMW asked Mr. President to note the figure of Thirty Thousand Naira (N30, 000.00) recommended by the TCNMW by way of motion and not by consensus, and also to note the Federal Government figure of Twenty Four Thousand Naira (N24, 000.00).
“Mr. President considered the Report in full and looked at the differing statistics/figures presented by everybody before he arrived at the figure of Twenty – Seven Thousand Naira (N27, 000.00) per month. I must reiterate that the output by the TCNMW was a recommendation and is not cast in stone, but advisory to Mr. President.”