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The Federal Government has again extended an invitation to organised Labour over negotiation of the new minimum wage, a reliable source revealed on Thursday.
“A letter has been addressed to Labour by the committee chairman and signed by the NSIWC chairman. The meeting is scheduled for Friday.
“Of course, Labour will attend. If they present a better offer on Friday we will accept it.,” the source who pleaded anonymity revealed.
On Tuesday, the minimum wage committee had adjourned indefinitely after talks between the Federal Government and organised Labour broke down as labour rejected the Federal Government’s N60,000 fresh proposal, up from the earlier N57,000 offer.
At the meeting, labour also lowered its demand by removing N3,000 from the N497,000 it proposed last week, pegging the new proposal at N494,000.
To fast-track the negotiation process, the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress of Nigeria on May Day gave the committee till the end of the month to wrap up talks on a new national minimum wage.
The ultimatum will expire on Friday night.
The President of the TUC, Festus Osifo, said the ultimatum issued by labour remained following the breakdown of talks on Tuesday.
“We have an ultimatum on May Day that if by May end, we don’t have a new minimum wage that will take a worker home, we will not be able to guarantee industrial peace. We are sticking to that ultimatum,” Osifo said.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, in a statement signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations in the ministry, Olajide Oshundun, on Wednesday, appealed to organised Labour to be considerate and patriotic in their demands in the ongoing negotiation for a new national minimum wage.
