Decentralised minimum wage: ‘How hypocritical these Governors are’ – NLC speaks

As the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) issued a strong warning to state governors supporting the decentralisation of wages, the continuous discussion on the structure of workers’ salaries in Nigeria reaches a new height.

Speaking from the 112th International Labour Conference in Geneva, NLC President Joe Ajaero, in a conversation with Daily Sun, denounced the governors’ plan, which he said runs rather contrary to the centralized nature of their own salaries.

“If governors want decentralised salaries for workers, they should first accept decentralised salaries for themselves from the Federal Government,” Ajaero argued, highlighting a perceived double standard in the governors’ stance.

The governors’ suggested decentralized pay scheme is meant to enable states to choose wages depending on their financial situation and economic reality.

The NLC worries, however, that this might cause major differences in salaries for workers throughout the nation, therefore compromising national norms for worker welfare.

Speaking against the backdrop of the ongoing minimum wage negotiation and states reaction on affordability, Ajaero said: “The governors from states where you even get nothing are still earning the same salary as governors that you’re getting billions from. So, how hypocritical those states governors could be?”

The Labour leader said he does not know what the governors mean by decentralisation of wages.

“Is it the source of payment? Is it coming from their purse? What are they actually saying, because minimum wage is like having a uniform law in the country? Are they now saying give us the right to run a kind of confederate system of government or permission to run a unitary system of government so that whatever we generate we spend it?”

He explained that if everything goes into a federation account and the governors also draw allocation from the federation account, the Federal Government has the exclusive right to determine what should be the minimum wage in the country.

Ajaero said it could be detrimental to the country if every employer of labour is allowed to set the minimum wage.

The NLC boss said every governor has the capacity to generate revenue to pay a competitive salary without waiting for money from the federation account. “Let them tell us, we will tell them how and where they can get money from their states. It’s not about waiting on the Federal Government to collect money.”

Halima Ahmed, the governor’s forum’s acting director of media affairs and public relations, stated that governors could not afford to pay a basic salary of ₦60,000.

Her argument is that enacting such a salary raise would drain many states’ monthly Federation Account allocations entirely for worker compensation.

However, considering the notable rise in allocations from the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC), which has jumped from ₦700 billion to ₦1.2 trillion, this NLC mentioned was baseless.

The NLC felt that state governors were extravagant and should limit many of their wild and pointless expenses to lower corruption.