Governors’ Forum Speaks On States Paying Less Than N30,000 Minimum Wage

The 36 State Governors in Nigeria, under the aegis of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), have said that they would negotiate independently on the consequential implications of N30,000 minimum wage.

Naija News reports that the chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and Governor of Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, made this known on Wednesday night, December 18, while fielding questions from journalists after a meeting at their Secretariat in Abuja.

This online news platform understands that the NGF Chairman said what remained was the need for States to renegotiate in terms of the consequential implication since “fingers are not equal”.

His words: “Minimum wage was not on our agenda because it is a settled matter and governors have all indicated without any equivocation that we subscribed to the Act of parliament that has been passed on the national minimum wage of N30,000.

“There is no debate. We have accepted that. The negotiation thing you are talking is about the consequential impact of the minimum wage on the higher level.

“Each state has started that process. If the Nigeria Labour Congress is not fully aware of the status of the negotiation in the various states, we will be happy to share the information available to us with them. But as far as we are concern, there is no decision from the Governors Forum to backtrack, we are not backtracking on the minimum wage.

“However, fingers are not equal, states have to renegotiate in terms of the consequential implication for the others. Some states may be in the position to pay N50,000, what we can tell you is that no state will pay less than N30,000 when we finally get to that point,” he added.