The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has declared the organised labour’s opposition to any move by the National Assembly to transfer labour issues, including the matter of the minimum wage, from the exclusive legislative list of the federal government to the concurrent list.
The amendment would empower individual states to set their workers’ wages.
Ajaero issued this warning at the weekend during the National Administrative Council meeting of the Central Working Committee (CWC) of NLC, which took place in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Describing the move as “an exercise in futility”, Ajaero argued that the issue of minimum wage is treated globally as a national matter in line with International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions, which regard member countries as entities, not sub-national units such as states.
He alleged that the plan by the lawmakers was a calculated attempt to “bastardise” the national minimum wage structure and shift other labour-related responsibilities to the states, including the establishment of state industrial courts that would independently handle wage disputes — a move he said violates ILO principles.
“The National Assembly should not go into this exercise in futility unless members also allow their respective states to determine their wages.
