Minimum wage: TUC keeps mum as ultimatum expires
NEWS DIGEST–The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria on Sunday declined to speak on its planned nationwide strike to protest the failure of some states to implement the new minimum wage.
On January 9, the TUC had given states that were yet to sign and implement the agreement till January 31 to do so.
The TUC, in a communiqué issued at the end of its executive council meeting on January 9, said if the states failed to do this, workers would embark on a nationwide industrial action.
The President, TUC, Quadri Olaleye, said state councils had been directed to mobilise their members in preparation of the planned strike.
The ultimatum given by the union had expired on Saturday and there was no word from the union over the weekend if it would embark on strike on Monday, the first working day of February.
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A text message sent to the General Secretary, TUC, Musa Lawal, received no response and he did not also answer phone calls put through by PUNCH correspondent.
Olaleye’s phone line, on the other hand, was ‘unreachable.’
Also, a call put through to the Second Deputy President, TUC, Oyinkan Olasanoye, rang out.
She was to respond to text message sent by PUNCH correspondent at the time of filing this report.
A source from the workers’ union, however, told PUNCH correspondent that many states had signed the agreement and had started paying.
It was gathered at the time of the ultimatum that about 15 states had started negotiations for the minimum wage while about six states had signed the agreement.
Currently, more than 20 states had signed the agreement, the source added, saying that the union was probably holding action on the planned strike, waiting to see how the situation would unfold.
