THE PRESIDENT of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, on Tuesday, June 4, 2024) said the indefinite strike embarked upon a day earlier (Monday, June 3) by organised labour to ensure the implementation of a new national minimum wage and the reduction of the hike in electricity tariff, was not suspended, but ‘relaxed’ to enable negotiation to continue.
Organised labour, under the auspices of NLC and TUC (Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), last Friday resolved to commence an ‘indefinite nationwide strike’ following seeming indeference by governments and the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to labour’s concerted demands for a new national minimum wage in the face of galloping inflation as a result of President Tinubu’s neo-liberal or market-driven policies.
Barely a day into the successful general strike that literally shutdown the economy, with massive backing of affiliates of the two labour centres and civil society allies as well as the masses, the leadership of NLC and TUC caved in to pressures from government by suspending the strike for a week.
Comrade Ajaero, captured in a video clip by the African Independent Television (AIT), however, told journalists that the strike was ‘relaxed’ to enable negotiations continue as labour saw “that federal government is committed to moving beyond N60,000.”
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“…So, for one week, that was our agreement; and even international conventions, they say you don’t negotiate at gunpoint, so whether they thought we were negotiating at gunpoint or whatever…, so, we didn’t suspend, we relaxed; so when our statement comes out; that we relaxed our actions for one week, so, so that we can negotiate.
“Yesterday’s meeting was a kind of mediatory meeting [which however ended up in an agreement], and then we are going back to the appropriate organ that discusses wages. So, we have come back to status quo ante belum. So, the status was the N497[,000] and the N60,000.
“So, depending on good faith, we can move up and down to reach and agreement, but if not, another stalemate,” Comrade Ajaero told journalists.
Upon further enquiry by a journalist on whether it was because of the one-week that inspired the leadership of organised labour to suspend the strike; Comrade Ajaero defended: “Read the letter and spirit of that agreement yesterday that the federal government is committed to moving beyond N60,000.
“Prior to now, even there was a challenge on why there was some sub-nationals on why you should even agree on N60[,000] and they were quarrelling among themselves on why it should be N60[,000].
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“Some of them didn’t even agree but the outcome of yesterday’s deiberation shows that they are committed to moving beyond that, so it’s like they have given the framework for us to negotiate, you know, to reach certain treshhold; that is it.
“And then, before, it appeared as if the negotiation was going to be infinitum, but the outcome yesterday showed that this should be completed or concluded within one week. So, what else do you want us to do.
“So, those are some of the obstacles, but we were negotiating without end, and then with a kind of ceiling from one partner that we are not moving,” Ajaero stated among other things.
Watch the video clip of Comrade Ajaero’s engagement with journalists as captured by AIT:
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