Governors have no right to reduce minimum wage – FG

The Federal Government said, yesterday, that the governors have no legitimate right to reduce the national minimum wage from the present N18, 000 because it was a product of agreement.


This came on the heels of the rejection by the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, of the recent proposal to remove fuel subsidy in 2016, the increment in the electricity tariff and the proposed re-introduction of toll gates on the federal roads.

Warning against any plan to reduce the minimum wage at the meeting with the leadership of NLC, Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, said the governors were only playing politics with the issue of minimum wage.

Ngige said instead of contemplating to reduce the minimum wage, the government would want workers to be paid higher when the economy improves.

The minister, however, blamed the organised labour for allegedly heating up the system by joining issues with the governors in talking about reduction or increment in minimum wage.