Kebbi State Governor, Nasir Idris, on Wednesday, approved a new minimum wage of N75,000 for civil servants in the state.
In a related development, Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, approved a new minimum wage package of N80,000 for public civil servants in the state.
Following the announcements, the labour unions in the state applauded the governors for the approval.
The Nigerian Labour Congress in Kebbi State commended the governor’s approval, following a two-day marathon meeting between the state government and union leaders.
The new wage, according to a statement after the meeting, will take effect immediately, with payments starting in October.
The state NLC Chairman, Murtala Usman, expressed satisfaction with the governor’s approval, stressing that the move demonstrated a strong sense of solidarity with the workers in the state.
He stated, “Mr Governor has shown that he is with the workers in the state.
“We made a proposal of three tables for him. We proposed N72,000, N73,000, and N75,000, and he decided to go for the N75,000 table, which shows he is for the workers.”
He also disclosed that the governor instructed that the payment be processed and made available to the workers within 72 hours. “To crown it all, he also said the payment starts from this month’s (October) salaries, which he categorically said should be made available to workers in the next 72 hours,” Usman added.
A statement signed by the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Ini Ememobong, which announced the N80,000 wage, revealed that the governor constituted an implementation committee to ensure the smooth transition to the new wage structure.
The committee, chaired by the state Head of Civil Service, Effiong Essien, is tasked with delivering a report within one month.
The statement said, “Governor of Akwa Ibom State, His Excellency, Pastor Umo Eno, has announced that the state government will pay a new minimum wage of N80,000 for all state government employees.
“To ensure a smooth rollout of this policy, the governor has also constituted an implementation committee, which has been given one month to deliver its report on how the wage increase will be executed.”
Other members of the committee are the chairpersons of the State Civil Service Commission, Local Government Service Commission, and various key permanent secretaries across ministries such as Finance, Labour and Manpower Planning, and Justice.
The committee also has representatives of major labour unions, such as the state chairperson of the NLC, the state chairman of the Trade Union Congress and the state president of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees.
The involvement of the unions in the committee, according to the statement, demonstrated the government’s commitment to ensuring transparency and accountability in the implementation of the new wage structure.
The state TUC Chairman, Dominic Abang, described the N80,000 minimum wage as a welcome development.
Abang, speaking with The PUNCH, said, “I don’t want to give my reaction now, but I want to thank the governor for the announcement, it’s a welcome development and we will take it up from there.
“He has also set up a committee, we will take it up from there but we want to thank him for the consideration of raising it above the national minimum wage.”
While workers in Kebbi and Akwa Ibom celebrate these new wage packages, civil servants in Sokoto State are awaiting action from their government.
The leadership of the NLC in Sokoto State expressed frustration over the delay in the approval of a new minimum wage for workers.
The Secretary of the NLC in Sokoto, Hamisu Hussain, in a phone interview with The PUNCH, revealed that the union had written to the state government twice regarding the issue but has yet to receive any response.
He noted that the union was under intense pressure from workers in the state as it related to their concerns about when and how much would be approved as the new minimum wage.
He added that the union leaders had given the state government until the end of the week to respond, after which the union would take a new dimension on the development.