Labour May Resume Strike, Insists On N250,000 As Minimum Wage

The Organised Labour said the one-week grace period given to the Federal Government last Tuesday, June 4, 2024, would expire by the midnight of Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

Labour said should the Federal Government and National Assembly fail to act on the demands of workers by tomorrow (Tuesday), the organs of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) would meet to decide on the resumption of the nationwide industrial action relaxed last week.

Chris Onyeka, an Assistant General Secretary of the NLC, stated this on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief show on Monday.

The NLC Official said, “The Federal Government and the National Assembly have the call now. It is not our call. Our demand is there for them (the government) to look at and send an Executive Bill to the National Assembly, and for the National Assembly to look at what we have demanded, the various fact of the law, and then come up with a National Minimum Act that meets our demands.

 If that does not meet our demand, we have given the Federal Government a one-week notice to look at the issues and that one week expires tomorrow (Tuesday). If after tomorrow, we have not seen any tangible response from the government, the organs of the Organised Labour will meet to decide on what next.”

When asked what the decision of Labour would be should the government insists on ₦62,000, he said, “It was clear what we said. We said we are relaxing a nationwide indefinite strike. It’s like putting a pause on it. So, if you put a pause on something and that organs that govern us as trade unions decide that we should remove that pause, it means that we go back to what was in existence before.”

‘Starvation Wage’

He said Labour won’t accept any ₦62,000 or ₦100,000 “starvation wage” as the minimum wage for Nigerian workers.

He insisted on ₦250,000, labour’s latest demand at the last meeting of the Tripartite Committee on Minimum Wage on Friday, as the living wage for an average Nigerian worker.

sides (labour and the government) failed to reach an agreement. While labour dropped again its demand from ₦494,000 to ₦250,000, the government added ₦2,000 to its initial ₦60,000 and offered workers ₦62,000.

Both sides submitted their reports to the President who is expected to make a decision and send an executive bill to the National Assembly to pass a new minimum wage bill to be signed into law by the President.

One Dead As Mosque Collapses In Lagos

One person has been confirmed dead in a mosque that collapsed in the Papa Ajao area of Lagos.

Newsmen learnt that the incident occurred on Sunday during afternoon prayers.

According to reports, several lifeless bodies have been recovered from the rubble, while those injured have been rushed to hospitals.

 The Lagos State Police Command has not been able to react to this  as the Police Public Relations Officer, SP Benjamin Hundeyin, did not take his calls.

Details shortly

UK Varsity Orders Nigerian Students To Leave School, Country Over Unpaid Fees

Nigerian students at Teesside University in the United Kingdom have been told to quit the school and return to Nigeria over unpaid fees.

According to BBC, Teesside University said the move was in line with the UK’s immigration regulations.

“Teesside University is proud to be a global institution with a diverse student population but is also very aware of its visa issuance and compliance obligations.

“These strict external regulations ensure that the university fully supports a robust immigration system and are outside of the university’s control,” BBC said, quoting a university spokesperson.

The university said it had “no choice” as failure to pay was a breach of visa sponsorship rules. It said it had made every effort to help the affected students, including with bespoke payment plans.

Meanwhile, many students who protested outside the campus on Tuesday accused the university of being “heartless” and unfair.

Adenike Ibrahim told the BBC she was close to handing in her dissertation when she was kicked off her course because she could not make a payment.

Despite having now paid her fees in full, she will have to leave the UK with her young son and cannot re-enrol.

“I did default [on payments], but I’d already paid 90 per cent of my tuition fees, and I went to all my classes,” she told the broadcaster. “I called them and asked to reach an agreement, but they do not care what happens to their students.”

Reacting to the development, the Home Office said the decision to offer or withdraw visa sponsorship rested with the sponsoring institution.

It said that when a visa was shortened or cancelled, individuals should “take steps to regularise their stay or make arrangements to leave the UK.”

In a letter, the Home Office told the students they had no right to appeal.

As of the time filing the report, the Nigerian Government under President Bola Tinubu is yet to response to the students’ ordeal in the UK.

This development comes amid Nigeria’s foreign exchange crisis and soaring inflation, which surged 33.69 per cent in April.