The 36 State Governors under the aegis of Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) on Friday disclosed that the Subnational Governments cannot afford N60,000 as the new minimum wage.
The resolution was conveyed via a press release by the NGF’s acting Director on Media Affairs and Public Affairs, Hajiya Halimah Salihu Ahmed.
Meanwhile, all the Governors are currently meeting with the leadership of the Organized Labour at the NGF head office in Abuja.
According to her, the “Forum’s stand on the N60,000 minimum wage is not sustainable.
“The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) is in agreement that a new minimum wage is due. The Forum also sympathises with labour unions in their push for higher wages.
“However, the Forum urges all parties to consider the fact that the minimum wage negotiations also involve consequential adjustments across all cadres, including pensioners.
“The NGF cautions parties in this important discussion to look beyond just signing a document for the sake of it; any agreement to be signed should be sustainable and realistic.
“All things considered, the NGF holds that the N60,000 minimum wage proposal is not sustainable and cannot fly.
“It will simply mean that many States will spend all their FAAC allocations on just paying salaries with nothing left for development purposes.
“In fact, a few States will end up borrowing to pay workers every month. We do not think this will be in the collective interest of the country, including workers.
“We appeal that all parties involved, especially the labour unions, consider all the socioeconomic variables and settle for an agreement that is sustainable, durable, and fair to all other segments of the society who have legitimate claims to public resources,” the statement said.
THEGUARDIAN
