By Ejimokun Temitope
The Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service, Technical and Professional Services Employees (AUPCTRE) has urged the Federal Government to pay the outstanding two-month wage award owed to workers.
The National President of AUPCTRE, Benjamin Anthony, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Wednesday.
Anthony, who is also the National Chairman of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council (JPSNC), said the union had repeatedly written to the Federal Government over the unpaid wage award.
He recalled that the government initially owed workers four months’ wage award, paid one month after the union’s intervention and later settled another month, leaving two months outstanding.
“We have written several letters to the government. After paying one month, they promised to pay the remaining months, but nothing happened.
“We wrote again, and another month was paid.
“Today, workers are still being owed two months’ wage award, and we do not understand why the government is treating workers this way.
“The union recently wrote to the Minister of Finance, requesting the release of the outstanding wage award,” he said.
Anthony also described the current state of workers’ welfare as poor, saying that economic hardship and rising inflation had eroded the value of the N70,000 national minimum wage.
According to him, the minimum wage can no longer adequately cater for the needs of an average family, considering the rising costs of food, housing, healthcare, transportation and education.
“A family of six cannot survive on N70,000, considering the rising cost of living.
“The economic realities have swallowed the minimum wage. Workers are finding it extremely difficult to survive because the wage can no longer meet their basic needs,” he said.
Anthony commended some states for fully implementing the minimum wage and urged those yet to comply to do so.
He said salary review should be treated as a separate exercise from minimum wage implementation, arguing that periodic salary adjustments were necessary to reflect prevailing economic realities.
“We expect the Federal Government to also review salaries in line with inflation, just as some states have done.
“That is the only way to provide real relief for workers,” Anthony said. (NAN)
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