The 37-member tripartite committee on minimum wage set up by the Federal Government will reconvene mid-April to continue negotiations on the new minimum wage.
DAILY NIGERIAN reports that President Bola Tinubu is expected to announce the new National Minimum Wage for Nigerian workers on May 1, 2024.
The minimum wage to be unveiled is expected to cushion the effects of the removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit.
Speaking with The Punch on Sunday in Abuja, the National Treasurer of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Hakeem Ambali, disclosed that the committee members are still collating and analyzing the reports received from the zonal public hearings.
Mr Ambali, who is also a member of the tripartite committee, added that committee had received the reports of zonal public hearings held across the six geo-political zones of the country between Wednesday, March 27, 2024 and Thursday, March 28, 2024
He recalled that during the public hearings, different zones had suggested different amounts for minimum wage.
According to him, the South West zone had suggested N794,000; the North East proposed N560,000 as minimum wage; North West proposed N485,000; the North Central proposed N709,000; South South demanded N850,000 while the South East demanded N540,000.
Speaking on the outcome of the recently held meeting, Mr Ambali simply said: “We have been compiling and analysing zonal reports.”
When asked about the date fixed for the next meeting of the committee, he said, “Mid-April.”
Recall that Mr Tinubu, through Vice President Kashim Shettima, on January 30, had set up the 37-member panel at the Council Chamber of the State House in Abuja.
With its membership cutting across federal and state governments, the private sector, and organised labour, the panel is to recommend a new national minimum wage for the country.
