TheCable

The federal government has proposed N24,000 as the new minimum wage for civil servants.

Chris Ngige, minister of labour, disclosed this while briefing state house correspondents after the weekly federal executive council (FEC) meeting.

He said after the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) called off the the nationwide strike, it agreed to N30,000 as minimum wage for workers in the public sector and N25,000 for their counterparts in the private sector.

Ngige, however, made it clear that the government would be able to afford N24,000.

He added that the government had to consult with the 36 state governors and after that, the federal government proposed N24,000, while governors proposed N20,000.

He denied the reports that government entered into an agreement with the organised labour to increase the minimum wage from N18,000 to N30,000.

Ayuba Wabba, president of the NLC, was quoted to have said that the federal government and the labour leaders agreed on N30,000 as the new minimum wage.

But Ngige said such information is not true.

The minister said in accordance with convention 131 of International Labour Organisation, the most important thing to consider in fixing the new minimum wage is the ability to pay.