- Ajaero insisted wage issues should stay on federal exclusive list, not shifted to states.
- The NLC said that move by NASS undermines international labour standards and ILO conventions.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has vowed to resist moves by the National Assembly to remove labour matters from the exclusive legislative list.
The president of the NLC, Joe Ajaero, made this known on Friday during the National Administrative Council meeting of the Central Working Committee (NWC) held in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Ajaero described the move as an exercise in “futility” and insisted that minimum wage matters should remain a national concern.
He said global best practices and International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions treat the issue of minimum wage as a national matter.
He argued that countries are recognised as entities by the ILO, not sub-national units like states.
According to him, the lawmakers’ plan was a deliberate attempt to undermine the national minimum wage structure.
He claimed it was also aimed at transferring other labour-related responsibilities to states.
Ajaero added that the proposed establishment of state industrial courts to handle wage-related disputes was against ILO principles.
He said such courts would independently manage wage issues in violation of internationally accepted standards.
“The National Assembly should not go into this exercise in futility unless members will also allow their respective states to determine their wages,” Ajaero warned.
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