Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige
Pay rise for civil servants now awaiting Buhari’s signature – Minister
Federal Government, Tuesday, disclosed that it has finalised plans to commence implementation of the salary increase demanded by public workers, as the document is now waiting for President Muhammadu Buhari to sign.
Speaking during the weekly Ministerial briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team, Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige disclosed that modalities are already in the pipeline to give a pay rise to civil servants especially those that enjoy peculiarity allowance, adding that the authorities are just waiting for the President’s approval to implement.
“We are already addressing the envisaged challenges associated with the current high cost of living. We are handling the issue of a pay rise, and some of the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAS) are doing that; even for Federal Civil Servants, there is a peculiar allowance that is envisioned for them.
“The Presidential Committee on Salaries has approved it and we have sent that to the President and once he approves it, implementation will start for them. Other people in the public service are also taking a cue, some are giving five or ten percent pay rise,” the minister said.
Hinting on the looming nationwide industrial action called by leadership of the Organised Labour over worsening Naira scarcity, the minister advised that dialogue remains the best tool for settling labour disputes.
According to Dr Ngige, through dialogue the government has in the last four years averted over 4000 impending strike actions.
“We have been very proactive in handling industrial disputes. We have conciliated about 4000 labour disputes, more than that figure I think about 4300 or so since I came into that ministry and you don’t hear about that.
“Once we get notice of an impending strike, we call them to come, we discuss and we resolve the matter. Some of them are not very big unions, especially in the oil and gas sector. But you don’t hear about that because we are forever committed to doing what we are supposed to do.
“The Ministry of Labour holistically conciliates but we don’t make those ones public because an agreement is reached almost immediately and the agreement ground is easy and you won’t see a strike. Once you write to us of a pre-action, (Trade Dispute Notice) once you do that, you have exercised your right and the rest is left for us,” the minister said.
Dr Ngige further disclosed that the Ministry has Labour Dispute Desks and Rapid Response Teams in all the states of the federation that help in addressing industrial disputes.
It would be recalled that the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), last Wednesday, officially declared a nationwide strike over the scarcity of cash in the country.
