The planned December 1 strike called by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) may suffer a setback as some state chapters of the union have withdrawn from the proposed industrial action.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that President Bola Tinubu had approved a new minimum wage of N70,000 for Nigerian workers in July, and many states agreed to pay above the minimum wage. However, 13 states and the Federal Capital Territory have yet to begin the implementation of the new minimum wage.
Some of the affected states include Abia, Akwa Ibom, Ebonyi, Ekiti, Imo, Nasarawa, Kaduna, and Katsina. Others are Oyo, Sokoto, Yobe, Zamfara, Enugu states, and the FCT.
Following the non-implementation of the wage structure, the NLC announced Strike action in the affected states.
However, some state chapters of the NLC, including Imo, Sokoto, Oyo, Akwa Ibom and Katsina, have withdrawn from the planned strike. The NLC chairmen in these states cited agreements reached with their respective state governments as the reason for their withdrawal.
The NLC Chairman in Katsina State, Hussaini Danduna, confirmed that workers in the state would not join the planned industrial action.
He said, “We have signed an agreement with the Katsina State Government, and based on this, we are not going to join the strike action declared by the national executive council of our union.”
Also, NLC Chairman in Imo, Uche Chigaemezu, said on Saturday that there was no plan to embark on any strike.
Chigaemezu said, “We cannot think of embarking on any strike because we have reached an agreement with the state government led by Governor Hope Uzodimma.
“He has shown commitment to the payment of N70,000 minimum wage to Imo workers. We have communicated our position to the national body, and they are aware of the decision of the government to pay the minimum wage soon.”
However, other states, including Kaduna, Nasarawa, Zamfara, and the FCT, have confirmed their participation in the strike. The Abia State chapter of the body is yet undecided.
Meanwhile, the NLC national leadership has also insisted that the strike will go on as planned, despite the withdrawal of some state chapters.
The NLC National Treasurer, Akeem Ambali, said labour had mobilised its affiliate unions across the country and directed their leadership to prepare their members for industrial action in states yet to implement the new minimum wage.
Ambali also berated states that had only made verbal commitments without formal agreements or implementation, adding that such states would not be spared from the industrial action.
