Former National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Adams Oshiomhole says the lives of an average government workers in Nigeria has not got better despite the new minimum wage approved by the federal government.
The former APC boss said instead of improvement in the life of Nigerian worker, the new minimum wage has made them even worse in terms of being able to efforts the basic necessities of life.
Oshiomhole spoke on Thursday at the Distinguished Personality Lecture organised by the National Institute for Security Studies, NISS, in Abuja the nation’s capital, saying the aim for approving the new wage by the federal government has failed to materialised.
The former governor of Edo state and President of the Nigerian Labour Congress, NLC, also questioned the leadership of the labour unions of their members for failing to improve the lives of their members through collective bargaining.
He said the suppression of workers rights to good life gave rise strike, adding that the unionism had enabled workers in the country to “negotiate collectively.”
The former governor now a senator however stated that the rising inflation in the country has prevented workers in the country to enjoy the benefit of wage increases over the years.
The situation, he further explained has left the workers in the country to be angry and disenchanted with the government.
Senator Oshiomhole said, “Significant disparities exist between minimum and maximum wages across sectors, leading to dissatisfaction among workers. The wealthy often benefit from state protection, while the poor struggle.
“The minimum wage is designed to protect vulnerable workers but is often not enforced. Setting minimum wages too high can risk job losses while setting them too low can lead to exploitation.
“Inflation severely impacts purchasing power, making it difficult for workers to maintain a decent standard of living. Historical comparisons show that many workers are poorer now than in the past, despite nominal wage increases.”
The magazine reported that workers in the country are currently upbeat after some state governments said they were prepared to pay the new wage of N70, 000 to their workers.
Workers’ joy even grwe the more following the decision of some state government to pay above what has been approved by the federal government.
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