By Kehinde Osayemi
Ogun State Governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has approved N77,000 as minimum wage for the lowest worker in the state, and the payment takes immediate effect.
Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Tokunbo Talabi, announced this at the end of a crucial meeting with Organized Labour in Ogun State, comprising the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Trade Union Congress (TUC), and the Joint Negotiating Council (JNC), to discuss the implementation of the new minimum wage.
Talabi said the meeting was at the instance of Governor Abiodun, who he stated has directed that no worker in the state should earn less than N77,000 starting from the month of October.
He stated that Prince Abiodun means well for the people of the state and to further demonstrate this, the Governor has advised the organized private sector to take a cue from the policy, as their workers are not exempted from the economic realities in the country.
“The Governor has therefore advised that the private sector should dialogue with their relevant stakeholders to arrive at a commensurate minimum wage for the sector while he will set up a monitoring team to see how it is implemented by the private sector to ensure no one is short-changed”.
On his part, the State NLC Chairman, Comrade Hameed Benco, expressed appreciation said the organized to the Governor for the approval.
” This approval followed a successful consultation with labour leaders and it is the highest in the country today.
“Some states that have implemented the new minimum wage are paying N70,000, while some pay N70,250 or less, but ours is N77,000 while other sectorial salaries will be affected accordingly.
” The government has graciously approved the submission of labour that the new basic salary should not be taxed”, Benco said.
In the same vein, Comrade Akeem Lasisi of the TUC and his counterpart, Comrade Isa Olude of the JNC, commended the government for being worker-friendly, while they noted that consequential adjustments for pensioners and other matters would be announced after due consultation with the relevant stakeholders.
In his reaction, Ogun State Head of Service, Mr. Kehinde Onasanya, said the approval of the minimum wage for workers underscores the responsiveness and sensitivity of the Governor and the government to the plight of the workers and the general populace of the state.
Onasanya expressed optimism that the gestures by the government would further boost the morale of the workers in committing themselves to the implementation of government policies.
