Respite may have come the way of low-income earners as the Federal Government disclosed that it has commenced payment of the new national minimum wage to persons within grade levels 01 – 06.
The assertion was made by the Minister of Labor and Productivity, Chris Ngige while briefing newsmen during the weekend in Enugu.
His claims were further collaborated by Lawrence Amaechi, National President of the Nigeria Civil Service Union (NCSU) and member of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JPSNC), who asserted that the junior workers received the new wage as their August 2019 salary.
The minister further dismissed the claim by the Nigerian Labor Congress (NLC) that the Federal Government was reluctant to pay the new minimum wage, which was signed into law in April by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Ngige also stressed that the issue at stake was the executive cadre of Grades level 7 to 17, which required a consequential adjustment that is still being negotiated.
The Minister noted that the low-income earners would be paid arrears spanning from April to August 2019 for workers in this band.
Nigige also appealed to labor unions to shelf down the planned strike as the Federal Government is renegotiating the modalities for payment of wages to workers from Grade Level 7 to 17.
