The federal government has called on the organised labour to consider the reality in negotiating new minimum wage.
The Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris in a statement issued Monday appealed to the Labour Unions to continue along the path of negotiations with the Federal and State Governments, under the auspices of the Tripartite Committee.
He noted that government was desirous of a peaceful outcome, and assured that they would do everything to make this happen.
Idris added: “Yesterday (Sunday), the leadership of the National Assembly met with the Unions. Today, we have offered another invitation to the Unions, to meet with us and continue our discussions.
“We will continue to engage, and continue to make ourselves very available in the context of these negotiations on behalf of the Nigerian people
“Let me make it clear that we are not opponents on this negotiating table. We are united by the fact that we want the best for the Federal Republic of Nigeria and for all 200 million citizens of the country.
“We have a responsibility to strike a measured and realistic balance, in this effort to arrive at a new minimum wage for Nigerians.
“Let us remind ourselves of the fundamental facts:
The minimum wage is not only for public sector workers. It will be binding on the private sector as well. This reality must be factored into the negotiations.
“As I have explained earlier, Labour’s current proposal of N494,000 is an increase of 1,547 percent on the existing wage, and translates into an annual wage bill of N9.5 trillion for the Federal Government of Nigeria alone.
“This is apart from its cost implications for subnational governments and private sector employees. Such a wage bill would cripple the Nigerian economy, by leading to massive job losses especially in the private sector.”