The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have called off the nationwide strike that began on Monday, June 3rd.
The decision to suspend the industrial action came after an emergency meeting between the labour unions and the Federal Government’s Tripartite Committee on the new national minimum wage.
Speaking to reporters in Abuja, the TUC President Festus Osifo announced that the strike has been suspended.
According to Vanguard, the suspension is five days to allow uninterrupted negotiations between the parties.
The labour leaders revealed that the Tripartite Committee will now meet daily for the next one week to arrive at an agreeable national minimum wage.
This development means that all government and private offices are expected to reopen and function as usual, as the strike has been put on hold.
The nationwide strike was initially called by the NLC and TUC on Monday, June 3rd after negotiations with the Federal Government over a new minimum wage collapsed.
The labour unions had demanded a minimum wage of N494,000, while the government had offered N60,000, leading to an impasse.
However, the emergency meeting has yielded a compromise, with both sides agreeing to continue negotiations in good faith to find a mutually acceptable solution.
This development is expected to relieve Nigerians, as the strike had stalled economic activities nationwide.
The suspension of the strike also allows the Tripartite Committee to work towards finalising the new national minimum wage within the next week, as agreed.
More details later…