By Ehigimetor Igbaugba
ORGANISED labour in Cross River State on Tuesday postponed the planned industrial action slated to commence on Wednesday following a breakdown of negotiation between the unions and the government.
The organised labour however, slated a two-day warning strike for November 25 and 26.
The state chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) of Nigeria, Comrade Monday Ogbodum, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar on Tuesday.
He said that the decision for the warning strike was arrived at following the meeting of various organs of organised labour in the state on Tuesday.
Ogbodum, however, said that the government had again invited labour to reconvene on Thursday after labour staged a walkout from the meeting of the Joint Public Service Negotiating and Implementation Committee on the new minimum wage on Monday.
“We have just concluded our meetings and our agreement is that we will shelve the planned strike for Wednesday for a warning strike that will take place on Monday and Tuesday.
“As for Thursday meeting, we will attend and if they are still not bringing anything concrete on the table by Thursday, we will have no option than to embark on the national strike slated for December 1.
“But the warning strike will definitely take place on Monday and Tuesday,” he said
It would be recalled that the labour unions had attributed government inaction towards implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage as the reason for their walkout.
“From the look of things, this same committee seems not ready for anything. We have heard from grapevine that the government is not looking at commencing implementation until January 2025.
“Our worry is that the Cross River Governor was a member of this committee that gave birth to the new wage.
“He was South-South representative in that committee and he is the one lagging behind while other states have already made pronouncement on this new wage to the workers.
“Before now, he has assured us that he will implement whatever that is agreed upon. As we speak, there is no sign of seriousness that the government is ready for the workers,” he said.
Also speaking on Monday, the NLC chairman in the state, Comrade Gregory Olayi, said that labour staged a walkout because the government representative in the committee appeared not serious.
He said that aside the fact that the government had not put anything on the table, the government representative seemed not to be acting on the mandate of the governor.
“In our last meeting on Thursday, they formed a technical committee which we had expected will come with something for us to discuss with.
“They came empty and unprepared from the look of things and we had to stage a walkout until they are prepared for us,” he said.
Olayi said that labour was meeting with all its organs in Cross River on Tuesday and whatever decision of the organs would be followed.
“We had on Thursday gave the government, a seven-day ultimatum, which expires Monday midnight.
“We will be meeting with all the organs and whatever decision taken, we all will see to it after the meeting on Tuesday. (NAN)
