Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo, has promised to improve on the existing welfare and security of life and property of Kogi workers to boost their efficiency and productivity.
Governor Ododo stated this on Wednesday while addressing the state’s civil servants during the 2024 Workers’ Day celebrated in Lokoja.
According to him, the state government has recognized the importance of welfare, the reason the workers of the state were enrolled on health insurance schemes to provide them with quality healthcare at affordable cost.
Speaking on the security of life and property of Kogi citizens, the governor said effort has been put in place to make the state safe and secure through the recent procurement and distribution of vehicles and motorcycles to enhance the performance of vigilante groups in the rural areas.
Governor Ododo, who promised to always dialogue with labour leaders to address the needs of the workers, said he has listened carefully to the various demands of the chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and promised to attend to all the requests one after the other.
“I will always do the needful to improve the living standard of Kogi workers and I am urging the workers to remain peaceful and support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to enable him to achieve all his laudable plans for Nigerians,” he stated.
Earlier in his speech, the Kogi State Chairman of the NLC, Comrade Gabriel Amari, disclosed that the current N30,000 national minimum wage falls short of meeting the basic needs of workers in the prevailing market conditions of the country.
“We advocate for the immediate implementation of a Wage Award totalling around N35,000 in Kogi State. This adjustment is not only fair but also urgent, given the relentless rise in the costs of goods and services, which continuously erodes the purchasing power of Workers.
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“Until the long-awaited negotiations for a new minimum wage are concluded and put into effect, the Wage Award would serve as a temporary relief for Workers grappling with the current economic hardships.
“We also appealed to the government to address the following specific concerns. Payment of weigh-in allowance for workers in media houses, Restoration of the 27.5% teachers’ peculiar allowance for teachers in primary and secondary schools in Kogi state, issuance of all outstanding promotion letters to deserving Workers among others,” the NLC Chairman said.