New Minimum Wage: Why court cannot stop nationwide strike – Labour

Trade Union Congress, TUC, has rejected the court judgement stopping workers from commencing a nationwide strike action on November 6th over new Minimum Wage.

The organised labour had threatened to commence an indefinite strike action to press home their demands for the national minimum wage to be increased from the current N18,000 to N30,000.

But Justice Sanusi Kado, on Friday, gave the order in a ruling on an ex parte application moved on behalf of the Federal Government by the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice, Dayo Apata.

Speaking on the development, Alhaji Kola Olumoh, the chairman, Trade Union Congress (TUC), in Kwara State said the Friday’s judgment of the National Industrial Court, Abuja, cannot stop the proposed NLC nationwide strike.

Olumoh described the judgment as a ploy to cause confusion and already belated.

He said the National body of the organised Labour Unions would appeal the judgment while the proposed nationwide strike would continue.

Olumoh said, “Labour was magnanimous enough to stand at N30,000 minimum wage for workers which could not be compared with the jumbo pay of the political office holders.

“We are fully prepared for the proposed strike in Kwara if the Federal Government fails to accept the N30,000 as minimum wage.”

He further advised workers in the state to fully prepare for the impending strike and cooperate with the Labour Unions in the struggle.

The TUC Chairman also alleged that most State Governments spend about 40 per cent of the monthly allocations for salary and wondered why they were rejecting N30,000 minimum wage.