Send Draft Bill On Minimum Wage To NASS, NLC Warns FG

The Nigeria Labour Congress has described the Federal Government’s silence on the N30,000 minimum wage proposal as provocative stressing that it expected President Muhammadu Buhari to have sent a draft bill to the National Assembly weeks after a report on the minimum wage was submitted to him.

Organised labour said it would not wait till eternity for the government on the issue.

In an interview with the Punch Newspapers, the General Secretary of the NLC, Mr Peter Ozo-Eson, said members of the union were becoming restless with the way the government had handled the issue.

He said that unless the government acted fast, the union might meet again to review the government’s position and take necessary action to press home its demand.

But he did not say when the leadership of the union would likely meet.

Ozo-Eson said, “The latest about the issue of the minimum wage is clear. We expect that since the Presidency had already received our report, the President should have drafted an executive bill to the National Assembly on it so that they can begin to legislate on it.

“That has not been done even though we expect that it should have been done already. We cannot continue to wait forever.

“The next step as I said is for the President to transmit a draft bill to the National Assembly. The Federal government’s delay on the issue is provocative, our members are becoming restless and the Federal Government must act fast on our report.

“If the delay continues, our next step will be made public after we meet again to review the steps taken so far.”

NAN