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Tag: Ngige

  • Ability to pay should determine minimum wage —Ngige

    Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has said that the ability of all employers of Labour in the country to pay should be the determinant of a new national minimum wage.

    The minister, who has consistently said that the tripartite Committee was yet to arrive at a figure as the new minimum wage, said the country cannot afford another round of labour crisis, hence, the need for Organised Labour to accept a new national minimum wage figure based on the capacity and the ability of both the government and the private sector to pay in line with social dialogue and the overall interest of the nation.

    Ngige, who spoke when he received the new Director General of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) Mr. Timothy Olawale and his predecessor, Mr. Olusegun Oshinowo, appealed to NECA to use its influence to lobby the organised labour to accept the new National Minimum Wage figure mutually agreeable to all the social partners.

    He said: “We need to arrive at a figure which the employers can afford to pay as an employee cannot fix a figure for the employer.

    “Rather, it must be based on collective bargaining and mutual agreement by the tripartite partners.

    “It is not a function of moving motions or voting at the National Tripartite Negotiation Committee to insist that the figure must be as the organised labour appears to make it look.

    “There is absolutely therefore no need to heat up the polity. The government’s proposed new minimum Wage figure is clearly based on critical facts and indices incapable of causing disequilibrium in the economy or upturning the national social order.”

    He told the new NECA boss to exceed the impressive record of his predecessor, saying, “You have enormous task ahead of you. The need for the establishment of more NECA offices across the country cannot be over emphasized so that more employers association can register with you.

    “This is in line with the focus of our labour administration as well as in tandem with the economic policies of the present administration. The numerous private sector employers who are informal need to be brought on board the formalised private sector employers’ body.”

    The Minister urged him to ensure that numerous private sector employers who are members of NECA as well as those not yet registered but are defaulting in payment of even the existing national minimum wage of N18, 000 are made to comply with the law.

    Ngige also commended the efforts of the immediate past NECA Boss, Olusegun Oshinowo, for contributing immensely to industrial peace and harmony in the private sector and ensuring that Nigeria was brought back to the governing board of the ILO employer section.

    Speaking earlier, Oshinowo told the minister that the new (DG) Timothy Olawale was the best man to take over the mantle of leadership, noting that since the formation of the Association, a (DG) was for the first time sourced from the organisation.

    He commended the minister for his open-door policy despite the opposing positions they have had to take on issues in the past.

    In his remarks, the new DG thanked the minister for the privilege of the courtesy visit and promised to match up the feat of his predecessor.

  • No agreement yet on minimum wage, says Ngige

    •FEC okays N5.2b for roads in Sokoto

    THE Federal Government has denied a report claiming that N30,000 minimum wage has been agreed upon for the new national minimum wage.

    Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige gave the indication at the end of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    He was with Minister of Information Lai Mohammed and the Minister of State for Power, Works and Housing Suleiman Hassan.

    According to Ngige, the Federal Government has not shifted ground on its N24,000 proposal.

    He said the issue of minimum wage is backed by law, which is binding on all.

    The minister said state governments, the private sector and the organised labour proposed N20,000, N25,000 and N30,000 as national minimum wage separately.

    The minister said the Federal Government would keep discussing with the organised labour and other stakeholders informally to arrive at a figure.

    He said: “We reconvened for the minimum wage committee on October 4 and 5, and we had adequate representation of all the three partners. Tripartite means the three groups that are negotiating; the first group is the organised labour, the second is the organised private sector and the third group is the government, which is called the authentic authority by the ILO.

    “So, we met and if you could remember the contentious issue as per that meeting was for figures to be fixed and we had all proposed our figures. But throughout the negotiations, figures were adjusted; the labour unions adjusted their figures and came down to N30,000 per month, organised private sectors also adjusted their figures from N25,000, which they had earlier proposed to N30,000.

    “Governors had their own figure, which was different from the figure of the Federal Government; both the Federal Government figure and that of the state governors were also presented and we discussed because the cardinal principle of wage fixing mechanism under the ILO is the ability to pay because the issue of minimum wage under convention 131, the fixing mechanism takes that into account and also says that there must be a consensual agreement.”

    Ngige added: “So, we have a figure of the Federal Government and the state governments have theirs. The state governments’ figure at the last time was N20,000, the Federal Government had a figure of N24,000 and that was where we all stood.

    “This negotiation took into account these irreducible offers on the different governments but we could not arrive at a consensus. Even though we adjourned our meeting and said we will put up a report that will reflect this position. We are still continuing to discuss informally to see if we can arrive at a common figure.

    “National Salaries and Incomes and Wages Commission has also done for the government and presented to the economic management team. So, discussions are still ongoing and that is where we are.

    Suleiman Hassan said FEC approved N5.2 billion for roads in Sokoto State.

     

    Labour: minister being economical with truth

    The organised labour has reacted to claims by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige that the tripartite committee on the new national minimum wage was yet to agree on a figure with unions’ leaders, but was still negotiating with them.

    A statement signed by Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President Ayuba Wabba, Trade Union Congress (TUC) President Bala Bobboi Kaigama and  United Labour Congress (ULC) Joe Ajaero said the minister was being economical with the truth.

    It noted that the committee arrived at a figure, which is to be presented to the President.

    He said the subcommittee on figure chaired by the minister presented four different figures, which the committee deliberated on for several hours before agreeing on a figure.

    The statement said “Our attention has been drawn to a statement credited to the Honourable Minister of Labour and Employment, claiming that no amount has been agreed by the tripartite committee recommendation to government. The report Further claimed that the minister said that government was still negotiating with Labour.

    “It is rather unfortunate and sad if Indeed, the Honourable Minister made those statements. For the avoidance of doubt, organised labour representatives wish to state unequivocally that the Tripartite Committee concluded is work, adopted a figure through a formal motion moved, seconded and adopted in the absence of any counter motion.”

     

  • Ngige faults Labour on new pay

    Minister of Labour and Employment Chris Ngige yesterday dismissed Labour’s threat to go on strike over the new minimum wage.

    The minister said the Chairman of the Committee and former Head of Service of the Federation Ms Amma Pepple will brief President Muhammadu Buhari on the progress so far made by the committee today.

    Ngige, who was reacting to the two-week ultimatum issued by organised Labour accusing the government of stalling negotiation, said the ultimatum was unnecessary as the committee was working within the time frame it set for itself.

    He said the various conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on minimum wage and other negotiations do not allow partners to issue threats as the other partner will be regarded as negotiating under duress.

    There is no figure for the committee to agree on. Labour blames this on the minister.

    According to the minister, the committee’s work, including a draft bill to be sent to the President and subsequently to the National Assembly, is ready. What is left, he said, is the figure to be agreed upon.

    He said while it is easy for organised Labour to agree on a figure, it is not that easy for the government as it must consider the country’s economic situation and the ability of the state governments to pay the agreed figure.

    He said while organised Labour first made a presentation of N56,000 as its demand, it withdrew it,  and made another presentation of N65,000. The Organised Private Sector made a presentation of N42,000 and later withdraw it for N25,000.

    Ngige said that with all the presentations, the government needs to look at everything that has been presented before arriving at a figure which can be paid by all. “If we arrive at a figure that is not implementable, what then Is the essence of negotiation?” he asked.

    He explained that at the last meeting of the committee, he requested for two weeks to consult with members of the Economic Management team, most of whom were out of the country with the President, adding that the committee was inaugurated by the President because of his personal interest in the matter.

    He said: “We don’t want people to renege on the agreement when we finally come up with something. That is why the President insisted that the governors must be part of the process. They had complained that they were not part of the last process.”

    The Governors Forum had also asked for more time to consult among themselves.

    Accusing organised Labour of trying to overheat the polity, Ngige said the Buhari administration is worker-friendly, adding that no worker has been sacked since its inception.

    Besides, the government is putting in place several palliatives for workers, Ngige said.

    He said the Federal Government spent about N70 billion last year in settling the backlog of workers’ emoluments while encouraging the private sector to grow and employ more workers.

    To Ngige, the ultimatum by organised Labour is a subtle blackmail, which is not allowed in Labour laws.

     

  • Ngige and the parable of the stolen fowl

    Still smarting from a grave slip of tongue in Ekiti on the eve of the July 14 governorship polls by mentioning Fayose instead of Fayemi as the person deserving victory, it is not exactly known if Chris Ngige’s difficulty with Yoruba names also extends to the proverbs of the Oduduwa land.

    Otherwise, he should be conversant with the common saying which roughly translates as follows: he who steals a pauper’s fowl will have to deal with the nuisance of becoming the subject of relentless nagging.

    In the context of the growing tension over the non-inauguration of the board of NSITF (Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund) almost a year after presidential pronouncement, one could be pardoned to equate the Nigerian labour movement to the proverbial pauper. As can be inferred, organized workers surely have more than a passing interest in the agency. Nominees from the labour congress are statutory members.

    So, when Ngige elected to stall the board’s inauguration for reasons that appear subjective, he should have known he was seriously courting the wrath of such vested interests unlikely to keep quiet for too long.

    The first salvo came from no other than a labour titan, Frank Kokori, on a live television to a captive national audience during the last June 12 memorial at Aso Rock.

    In the course of his speech that day, the NUPENG hero made an aside in which he lamented to President Buhari that he was yet to formally assume the chairmanship of the NSITF almost a year after being named.

    As they say, if it takes twenty years to learn madness, how many years will such an apprentice have left to actually practise it?

    True, last week’s open hot exchange between the Labour minister and APC national chairman, Adam Oshiomhole, on the same issue can hardly be cited as ideal in intra-party communication. By pulling off his gloves publicly, the latter obviously betrayed an instinctive bias for his primary constituency – the organized union.

    However, Ngige’s own defence only seems to have deepened public curiosity. In a loaded innuendo, the minister declared that “NSITF will no longer be a cash cow.”

    Of course, such rhetoric is quite seductive.

    But the argument that the board inauguration was being delayed in view of the investigation of the massive looting by the erstwhile board is very syrupy indeed. Otherwise, similar argument could also have been canvassed that Ngige’s own swearing-in be withheld in 2015 until the said filth in the ministry was cleared. Are the new appointees also suspects in the alleged fraud? In what way would their activities jeopardize the probe of their predecessors?

    Even more laughable is Ngige’s frantic waving of empty hands in the air as if such token gesture alone proves moral hygiene following suggestions that his action is a power-grab ploy. He started lecturing us on the operation of the Public Procurement Act and how its letters make it impossible for political appointees like him to influence contract award.

    Ha, Dr. Ngige!

    True, in theory, nowhere in the statute is the governor or president expected to get involved directly in dispensing contracts. Of course, there is the tender’s board, in fulfillment of all righteousness. But the devil actually lurks in the approving authorities. Unless Ngige would have us believe that, as governor in Anambra, his commissioners had the final say and authorized payments. Of course, it is the preserve of the minister or commissioner to table memo detailing such contracts before the federal or state executive council for consideration.

    So, who does not know how to hide a piece of meat in the mouth and pretend that it’s missing?

    Against such shifty backcloth, insinuations are therefore bound to be made that the Minister is actually unwilling to let go of such agency with very fat wallet. Already, the referenced “pauper” (the labour) has drawn attention to alleged secret recruitment of additional 350 senior managers into NSITF by the minister while his panel would appear to be looking for what is no longer missing.

    If true, it is doubtful if the minister could have acted so unilaterally without the buy-in of the board. Meaning that new iniquities are being perpetrated under the guise of punishing old ones.

    In what would then appear an afterthought, Ngige played another familiar card in filibustering later in the week. He raised another committee to look into the implementation of the findings of an earlier panel. Now, we may have to consult the oracle to tell when the new body will finish their own assignment. And to imagine that the administration practically has less than a year to the expiration of the current mandate!

    Of course, Ngige is free to continue to pretend he does not know that the board appointments are meant to be “empowerment” for party loyalists. Pray, if Kokori were to sell Buhari in PDP-dominated Delta in the coming months, what will he be telling his own people he has benefitted other than the custody of a glossy appointment letter as NSITF chair?

    There is no more excuse for Ngige.

  • Ngige to Oshiomhole: be guided in your utterances

    •’Don’t misinform Nigerians’

    MINISTER of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige has asked All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole to be versed “in little basic issues” that guide public governance.

    According to the minister, this would enable Oshiomhole to be properly guided in his utterances to avoid unnecessary character assassination and misinformation of the public.

    Ngige, in a statement, said the reports that he appropriated the powers of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) Board in the award of contracts leading to the delay in inaugurating the board of the agency was false and misleading.

    The minister, who was reacting to a widely publicised statement by the APC National Chairman, said neither the minister nor the board of the agency has the power to award contracts since they were not part of the Tenders Board.

    He insisted that the monumental fraud in the agency accounts for why the board of the agency has not been inaugurated.

    The statement reads: “The attention of the Minister of Labour and Employment has been drawn to media reports that his office appropriated the powers of the NSITF Board in the award of contracts, hence the delay in inaugurating the board of the agency.

    “Such a blatant falsehood is either on account of fertile ignorance or outright mischief or both by the originator as well as the peddlers.  It is therefore imperative that the provisions of the Procurement Act 2010, which is clear and unambiguous on the process for the award of contracts be re-emphasised.

    “For clarity purpose, the Ministerial Tenders Board (MTB) for the award of contracts in any ministry is made up of the Permanent Secretary as chairman and his directors, while in the parastatals, the Parastatals Tenders Board consists of the Chief Executive Officer (Director General or Managing Director) and his directors.

    “The minister is not a member and, therefore, does not award contracts. Similarly, members of Board of Directors being not members of the Tenders Board of the parastatals do not also award contracts.”

    It added: “It is, therefore, a stunningly crass ignorance for anyone to claim that part of the reasons for the delay in the inauguration of the board of the NSITF or any parastatal was to enable the minister usurp the role of the board as regards the award of contracts.

    “When the threshold of the award is above a parastatal, such contracts are referred to the MTB for final approval. Such also is the case with the Ministerial Tenders Board threshold which is referred to the Bureau for Public Procurement and from there, to the Council of Ministers called the Federal Executive Council for treatment and ratification.

    “So, in effect, the Federal Executive Council is not a contract awarding body and hence ministers do not award contracts stricto sensu.

    “It is our humble view, therefore, that those in authority should be versed in little basic issues that guide public governance so as to be properly guided in their utterances to avoid unnecessary character assassination and unfortunate misinformation of  the general public.”

     

     

     

  • Ngige: APC won’t hesitate to expel erring ministers – Oshiomhole

    The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole, on Monday warned that the party would not hesitate to suspend or expel any minister who disobeyed President Muhammadu Buhari’s directives.

    He was reacting to the delay by the Minister of Labour, Senator Chris Ngige, to inaugurate the board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Funds (NSITF)

    Ngige was said to have refused to inaugurate the board due to alleged fraud of over N40 billion by previous board.

    But speaking with State House correspondents after meeting with President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Oshiomhole said: “If the minister refuse we will suspend him from the party. You know we must return to internal discipline. For me it is the height of mischief for any minister. You cannot purport to be honourable minister and you act dishonourably and nobody is greater than the party.

    “And if the President condones disrespect for his office, I will not condone disrespect for the party. And when we expel the minister we will prevail on the President that he can’t keep in his cabinet people who have neither respect for his own decisions nor have respect for the party without which they would not have been ministers.

    “There are no independent candidate in our system, nobody. I emphasis no minister is above the party and they have taken undue advantage of the President’s fatherly disposition.

    “Now, it is the same green pen that made them minister that appointed these boards that they are refusing to swear in. And it is absolutely illegal for a minister in a democracy to prey the powers of the board because the laws establishing those institutions are clear, that the boards have procedures to follow.

    “So, when a minister sits in his office to appropriate the powers of the board in a democracy, not in a dictatorship, award contract that didn’t go through boards, those are clearing abuse of office for which they are liable.

    “I am convinced that what they are doing is not with the endorsement of Mr. President. Over the period they have tried to drop the President’s name but I tell them it is the same authority that appointed these people.

    “So, we are informing them that it is either they comply with the President’s instructions or they comply with the party’s position or they go and administer outside the government.”

     

     

  • Ngige threatens to revoke oil firms’ licences

    minister of Labour and Employment Chris Ngige has warned that the government will revoke the licence of contractors operating in the oil and gas sector if they continue to promote unfair labour practices.

    The minister, who spoke when he received members of the National Administrative Council of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG), said others whose license has expired risk not being renewed. This, he said, is because the Ministry is working on reforming the process of granting and renewing Recruiters Licence to Labour Contractors with the aim of ensuring adherence to expatriate quotas and eschew unfair labour practices.

    Ngige said: “I thank you for taking interest in job creation in the oil and gas sector and for observing some lapses on the part of Labour Contractors licensed by the Ministry.

    “We have started reforming the process of granting and renewing Recruiters’ License and we will not grant or renew the license of recruiters who compromise by aiding and abetting “yellow dog” contracts, as any recruiters found abusing expatriate quotas will have his license revoked or not renewed.”

    He emphasised that this move is in line with the Executive Order of the present administration led by President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure that jobs that are reserved for the locals are not given to expatriates as well as protect indigenous products over foreign products.

    He added that on the part of the Ministry, efforts are in place to close up identified gaps in the operational guideline and labour laws in the oil and gas sector.

    He said: “In 2016, despite the shortfall in the oil revenue, the Federal Government brought both the International Oil Companies and the workers together to agree and fashion out ways to ensure that there is no job loss. This is something to cheer because all parties agreed and we were able to save jobs in the oil and gas sector.

    “We were never happy when people lose their job because the pressure will always come back to the government. Today oil prices have picked up and activities have commenced so we expect new jobs to be created in the oil and gas sector.”

    He said the desire of workers for decent work is in tandem with the Change Agenda which is aimed at improving the living standards of Nigerian workers and promote the Decent Work Agenda as well as ensure that harmonious milieu that will enhance productivity, occupational safety and health is maintained at workplaces by channeling accrued revenue from crude oil to other sectors thereby steering the nation’s economy on new part of profitable diversification.

     

     

  • No gang up can stop Buhari, says Ngige

    Minister of  Labour and Productivity Chris Ngige said yesterday in Ado Ekiti that no gang up would stop President Buhari’s re-election.

    Ngige said the gang up against the President by some leaders would fail ahead of next year election, noting that he had brought sanity to Nigeria’s economy compared to what he met when he assumed office in 2015.

    The former senator who spoke in Ado Ekiti, the Ekiti state capital, during the grand finale mega rally of the All Progressives Congress, described the parties forming alliance against the president as “mushroom”.

    He said the APC, which first evolved as Action Congress and later Action Congress of Nigeria before its current name of APC, had remained a progressive party with the vision and mission of uplifting the lives of Nigerians.

    The former governor said the people of Ekiti should vote wisely by electing Dr. Kayode Fayemi of APC on Saturday, so as to be part of progressives.

    According to him, parties gathering to unseat Buhari are just wasting their time as nothing will stop President Buhari from winning 2019 Presidential election.

    “All the gang up against the President will fail and he is going to win with landslide victory. It is obvious that before now, there was strong opposition against President Buhari by same past Nigerian leaders, but their plan to stop him then failed.

    “I can equally assure you that their gang up now will still fail because those who say Buhari should not run in 2019 are afraid that they may be forced to cough out the public fund they embezzled through dubious means, “he said.

    He accused Governor Ayo Fayose of impoverishing the people of Ekiti state, especially the Igbo traders by his refusal to pay backlog of salaries.

    He noted that the non-payment of salaries was fast destroying the businesses of many Igbo people that are into trading in the state, saying a vote for Fayemi would address the current situation.

  • Ngige: We’re up to date on reporting Labour Standards to ILO

    The Minister of Labour and Employment Chris Ngige yesterday denied the country was not lagging behind in submitting its report on Labour Standards to International Labour Organisation (ILO).

    Reacting to a report by a team of experts from the ILO that Nigeria was not up to date in its reports on Labour Standards, the Minister said the government constantly submits its report to the world Labour body as required.

    He however told our correspondent on phone the nation was only having difficulty in handling certain technical reports for which it sought the assistance of the ILO.

    He said: “We invited the ILO to help with technical support because there are some areas where we are having problems.

    “We invited the team you saw and they came to train our people on how to handle those technical areas.

    “The training was attended by our people (government officials), Labour and employers.

    “We now know how to handle the reports which will be submitted to the ILO latest 1st of September this year.

    “So, it will be wrong to say that we are lagging behind in reporting on Labour Standards in the country.”

    Also, Director of Press, Samuel Olowookere, in a statement quoted the minister as saying contrary to what he described as “incorrect and misleading report”, Nigeria  has been living up to expectations in discharge of all responsibilities regarding her membership of the ILO.

    The statement said: “We wish to state for the avoidance of doubt that Nigeria has never been found wanting in Labour Standards Reporting Rendition as we have never been sanctioned or brought before the plenary for reasons of failure.

    “Report rendering is work in progress hence as one report is being rendered some others will be due.

    ” It will be recalled that in 2017, Nigeria submitted reports on 10(ten) ILO Conventions as they became due, including the first report on Maritime Labour Convention, which is effectively being implemented now in collaboration with the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency(NIMASA)

    “Therefore, the statement purportedly made by an ILO Specialist in Workers Activities and curiously reported only in one of the national dailies is incorrect and should be disregarded.

    “Moreover, the non-convening of the National Labour Advisory Council which the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba alleged in the same report as being responsible for alleged lag is not the appropriate body to assist Nigeria in being up to date in her report.”

     

  • Labour criticises Ngige over shift in minimum wage implementation

    Workers have expressed disappointment on the statement by the Minister of Labour and Employment Dr Chris Ngige, that the new minimum wage cannot be implemented in September.

    They described the comment as not only insensitive, but also provocative.

    They expressed dismay over  the delay in the implementation of the new minimum wage, noting that the expected increase in salaries would dampen workers’ morale.

    Ngige, who earlier raised the hope of a new minimum wage, also dashed it.

    The minister said going by the work rate of the tripartite committee, it was most unlikely that a new minimum wage would take off in September.

    Ngige said all that could be achieved by the committee was the submission of report to the Federal Government in September while it might take a few months for the processes to be completed.

    Besides, the minister also pointed at the inability of some states to pay as well as the private sector.

    Ngige said there were differentials in the figures that were arrived at by the major stakeholders that ranged between N22, 000 and N58, 000 while the labour movement was holding out for N66, 500.

    Reacting, a female civil servant, Juliet Adaji, who commended the Lagos State government for the prompt payment of salaries,  urged the Federal Government to speed up the implementation process.

    “Our salaries are not enough to take care of the high cost of living. Things are expensive; people are suffering.The government should not extend the September target,” she said.

    Another worker based in Kogi State, Adole Kenneth, said things were difficult for them as the government could not pay its workers promptly, adding that it would be difficult for it to implement a new salary structure.

    “As I speak, the government is owing me up to five months. When I follow up on the debates of the increased wage workers are canvassing, it makes me look as if I am dreaming because even with the meagre N18, 000 minimum wage, Kogi State is still not meeting up. I wonder about the N66,500 new minimum wage workers are clamouring for,” Adole said.

    Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President, Ayuba Wabba, said Congress would resist any move to re-negotiate the minimum wage, insisting that the proposed minimum wage must be paid to workers.

    He urged the Federal Government to ensure that federal allocations were not released to states and local governments that refuse to implement the new wage.

    Wabba said: “We are battle-ready against public and private organisations that would refuse to conform to the new minimum wage. At our disposal is the power of our votes. We shall ensure that the government that refuses to pay the new minimum wage will not receive the support of the working class, pensioners and their families.”

    He argued that the N66, 500 national minimum wage would at best meet only the basic needs of the average worker, if inflation were kept at a single digit.

    Struggling to reconcile non-take off of the new wage in September with  declarations by the minister as well as the Vice President, Wabba said there was an urgent need by Ngige to clarify his ‘double speak’ on the planned minimum wage to avoid confusion on the issue.

    Wabba queried the sudden change in the proposed implementation date, noting that Ngige had without any prompting, informed the world that the Federal Government would start paying the new wage in September.

    United Labour Congress (ULC) berated Ngige, adding that it would not accept anything that would affect workers adversely.

    It described the Ngige’s statement as unfortunate, saying he should have consulted members of the tripartite committee on the minimum wage before announcing the wage.