The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said no agreement was reached at the end of the minimum wage Tripartite negotiation.
The Congress said this in response to the President’s Democracy speech where he said that the N62,000 minimum wage proposal was negotiated in good faith.
The president had said, “In this spirit, we have negotiated in good faith and with open arms with organized labour on a new national minimum wage”.
Responding in a statement signed by NLC Acting President Comrade Prince Adeyanju and made available to THE WHISTLER, the congress said, “We are therefore surprised at the submission of Mr. President over a supposed agreement.
“We believe that he may have been misled into believing that there was an agreement with the NIC and TUC.
“The NLC would have expected that the advisers of the President would have told him that we neither reached any agreement with the federal government and the employers on the base figure for a National Minimum Wage nor on its other components.
“Our demand remains N250,000 (two hundred and fifty thousand Naira) only and we have not been given any compelling reasons to change this position which we consider a great concession by Nigerian workers during the tripartite negotiation process.
“There was none and we must let the President, Nigerians and other national stakeholders understand this immediately to avoid a mix-up in the ongoing conversation around the national minimum wage.
“We have also not seen a copy of the document submitted to him and will not accept any doctored document”.
Speaking further, the Congress reiterated an earlier allegation of harassment by security personnel during the minimum wage meeting.
According to the trade union, “President’s advisers did not tell him the truth that the leaders of the trade unions were intimidated and harassed. It is therefore important that Mr. President understands that we were threatened severally by his operatives perhaps without his consent.
“Fully armed soldiers surrounded us while we were in a negotiation with the government and despite denials, recent statements by senior officials of the government reaffirmed our fears contrary to the assurances by the government”.
“Mr. President should not allow these individuals and groups to sabotage his promise of lifting Nigerian workers out of poverty”.