ABUJA – The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has given defaulting states and employers until March to implement the national minimum wage and consequential adjustment or face labour laws.

The President Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU), Mr. Mohammed Ibrahim, made the assertion at the National Leadership Retreat organised for the union’s National Administrative Committee Members with the theme: ‘Leadership Challenges amongst Activists’.

Ibrahim, who is also the National Internal Auditor of the NLC, said that tough actions would be taken against defaulting employers of labour as there are laws to enforce the rights of workers.

“The national minimum wage has been signed into law, and payments should have commenced nationwide.

“However, in most institutions and states, what they did was just to award a certain amount or a figure they are merely using to play with the intelligence of workers as minimum wage. I am happy that the NLC is not sleeping on this matter and we have been engaging.

“Going forward, I can assure you that we are taking very stringent measures to ensure that between now and the end of this first quarter, that the minimum wage and consequential adjustment will be implemented.

“Any state or employer of labour that refuses to implement the national minimum wage and the adjustment in workers’ salaries accordingly will face the consequences. The labour laws are there and we have all that it takes to enforce our rights against those employers,” said Ibrahim.

Speaking on issues around the activities relating to workers welfare, Ibrahim said that industrial actions had lost their effectiveness due to government indifference and worker fatigue.

He, however, admitted that strikes remained a last resort and that the union would continue to explore alternative negotiation strategies at all times.

“Unfortunately, some of our own members work against our collective struggle. They engage in blackmail and underhand dealings to derail strike actions.

“But this is not unique to SSANU; it happens in every sector. Part of why we are holding this retreat is to educate our members on the importance of unity and discipline within the union.”