NLC TUC defy plea : begins nationwide strike

Indefinite strike begins today Monday , June 3, 2024, nationwide despite appeal by the Federal Government to shelf the action.

The leadership of the National Assembly also called an emergency meeting to find a lasting solution which ended in deadlock because according to the Labour Unions, the leaders had no mandate to call off the strike.

To this end, the Organised labour, comprising Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Trade Union Congress, TUC has said that the indefinite strike will go on as planned

Labour instructed workers to stay at home and insist on a living wage instead of current starvation wage government is paying workers.

“We don’t have the right to call off the industrial action approved by our Organs”.

“Thus, The action will continue while we will have a meeting with our Organs to relate to them your proposals”, organized Labour told the Leadership Of the National Assembly.

Meanwhile, all the Unions, including  NANs, National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, PENGASSAN, National Union of Teachers, NUT, National Union of Local Government Employees, NULGE among others have all mobilized members for the strike.

Recall that labour is demanding a minimum wage of N650,000, reversal of recent electricity tariffs and discontinuation of classification of consumers into bands by discos.

Labour has rejected N54,000 minimum wage offered by the federal government.

Earlier, the leadership of the National Assembly had appealed to the Organized Labour not to go on strike as this will increase unemployment if the ( N494k ) minimum wage is Implemented.

” The national minimum wage of N494,000 demanded by the Organised Labour will force many private companies to dismiss their workers if implemented ” , Senate President Godswill Akpabio said.

Senator Akpabio was emphatic about the consequences of the NLC TUC decision to embark on the strike action during an emergency meeting with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Abuja on Sunday evening.

Akpabio, who was begging the NLC and the TUC not to go on the indefinite nationwide strike slated for today, said people must also be mindful of collateral damage when the new minimum wage being demanded is approved.

Julie Ekong