The Federal Government is optimistic that the impasse over the new minimum wage will be resolved by next week.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation Mohammed Malagi and his Labour and Employment (state) counterpart Nkeiruka Onyejeocha said this after a closed-door session between President Bola Tinubu and the leaders of organised labour at the State House in Abuja on Thursday.
The meeting, which lasted about an hour, had in attendance the president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero; his counterpart at the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Festus Osifo, and other members of their delegation.
According to the TUC boss, the labour delegation informed the President of the economic difficulties Nigerians are going through.
In the meeting, we tried to put the issues on the table, issues that are bothering and biting Nigerians today. The economic difficulties and the value of the naira, how it has also eroded, and how these have affected the prices of commodities and goods in the market.
“So, we tried to put these before Mr President because he is the president of the country and the bulk stops at his table,” the TUC boss said.
“We have had all the conversations with all his agents, but today we said let us meet with the father of the country and have this conversation and make the argument that labour always makes. We made all the arguments, the economic analysis, macro, micro, fiscal and monetary issues.
“So, we put everything forward and at the end, the President made his remark as the president and we all agreed let’s go back, we internalize it, we have some conversation, and by one week time, we will come back and we will continue the meeting.”
The NLC President said the meeting was not a negotiation and the two figures remain on the table.
“In the real sense, it wasn’t a negotiation but a discussion and we have had that discussion. We agreed to look at the real terms probably and reconvene in the next week. So, that’s where we are because we didn’t go down there to talk naira and kobo,” Ajaero said.
“At least there were some basic issues that we agreed on. The status quo in terms of the amount N250,000 and N62,000 remains until we finish this conversation.”