Governors are not considering a minimum wage higher than N70,000, sources revealed last night according to The Nation.
At a meeting in Abuja, the state leaders reviewed the economic situation and concluded that anything above N70,000 would be unaffordable and unsustainable.
They dismissed the N100,000 option proposed by some parties.
Sources at the meeting said the governors, who gathered under the Nigeria Governors’ Forum debated options between N60,000, offered to Labour by the Federal Government before the recent strike, and N70,000, which the Edo State Government has already started paying.
Unable to reach a consensus on a uniform amount, the governors established a committee led by Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma. Uzodimma is also the chairman of the Progressives Governors Forum, representing governors elected under the All Progressives Congress.
This stance aligns with a previous statement by NGF Chairman and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, who emphasized that states would only agree to a minimum wage that is “affordable and sustainable.”
A source at the meeting said: “After deliberation on the minimum wage, we decided to consider options between N60,000 and N70,000 a month. We could not reach a concrete decision on the wage rate for states.
“Eventually, a committee, to be led by Governor Uzodimma, was mandated to look at all presentations and make recommendations.
“The NGF will soon reconvene to consider the Uzodimma Committee report.”
The source added: “No state can afford to pay a N100,000 minimum wage and we have ruled out this benchmark.
“Records available to us indicated that some states are still paying N18,000 because they are unable to afford N30,000 (which came into effect in 2019). Only one state has adopted a N70,000 wage.”
