Nigeria Governors’ Forum Claims New Minimum wage may Push States into Bankruptcy
As the nation awaits the new minimum wage promised to be sent to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu, the burden of implementing the minimum wage may make many states bankrupt.
The Federal Executive Council, at its meeting last Tuesday, stepped down a memorandum on the report of the tripartite committee on the new minimum wage, to allow for more consultations among the federal and state governments on one part, the private sector and the labour unions on the other part.
Last Thursday, Tinubu met with the governors at the National Economic Council meeting chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima. The meeting, which was expected to deliberate on the national minimum wage, was, however, silent on whether or not it considered the issue.
Also last Thursday, the Southern Governors’ Forum released the communiqué of its meeting held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, with the governors asking that each state should negotiate minimum wage with its workforce.
The labour unions have, however, reacted to the stance of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum over their overbearing influence on the minimum wage negotiations.
The report predicted that if the recurrent expenditure increased by 50 per cent, 13 states would fall into deficit, with only 10 remaining financially stable.
