The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has warned that its members will commence a nationwide strike action without any formal notice to the Federal Government if there is any further increase in the pump price of petrol.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, said this at the ongoing African Alliance of Trade Unions meeting in Abuja today, August 14.
While reacting to the advice of the Registrar of Trade Unions on how labour should conduct themselves as they carry out their responsibilities of protecting the interest of workers and Nigerians by extension, Ajaero, pleaded with the Federal government to change “those bad economic policies that make our wages next to nothing”
“As we’re here now. They’re contemplating increasing the pump price of petroleum products. But the Minister of Labor for some time now, will only go to the Minister of Justice to come up with an injunction to hold the hands of labour not to respond. They have started floating ideas of a likely increase in the price of petroleum products.
But let me say this. Nigeria workers will not give any strike notice if we have not addressed the consequences of the last two increases in fuel pump price, and we wake up from asleep to hear that they have tampered with the fuel pump price again.”
Speaking further, he said;
“I want to plead with the government that those bad economic policies that make our wages next to nothing, should be checked. If you check those policies that lead to inflation, and devaluation of the currency, we will be comfortable even where we are. if the Naira is at par with the dollar today, we will ask you to leave the minimum wage at 30,000.
If inflation is checked to zero, we will ask you to leave things the way they are. But inflation is flying, and by the admittance of the National Bureau of Statistics, we have over 133 million Nigerians that are multi-dimensionally poor. I think these are the issues Government should address. If we go for wage increase tomorrow, the inflation that will follow suit will destroy it.”
