The Cross River chapter of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) has announced that it will not renegotiate the newly agreed minimum wage of N70,000, which was settled between labor unions and the Federal Government.
Monday Ogbodum, the State Chairman of TUC, made this statement in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Calabar on Tuesday, September 3.
Ogbodum explained that labor unions in Cross River expect the state government to implement the agreed wage adjustment once the National Salaries and Wages Commission releases the final table.
He criticized other state governments for forming committees to handle the new wage before the Commission had finalized its table. “It is expected that states will start implementing the new wage once the Commission completes its work and releases the table,” he said. “We have not yet presented any position on the new minimum wage to the Cross River government. Once the table is ready and released, there will be no need for further negotiation.”
In response, the Cross River government stated that it has not yet decided on the implementation of the new minimum wage. Dr. Erasmus Ekpang, the Commissioner for Information, told NAN that the State Executive Council has not yet discussed the minimum wage issue.
Ekpang reassured that the state government is committed to workers’ welfare, stating, “If this government was able to increase the minimum wage to N40,000 without any issues, paying the new wage will be a decision it will handle without difficulty.”
The new minimum wage, recently increased from N30,000 to N70,000, follows months of negotiations between the Federal Government and labor unions. Some states, including Ebonyi, Zamfara, Enugu, and Gombe, have already established committees to oversee its implementation.
