In a candid interview on Arise TV, the president of the Trade Union Congress, Festus Osifo illustrated the extent to which the union had compromised by reducing its initial demand for a N615,000 minimum wage to the current N494,000. Despite this concession, he felt that the government was not being flexible enough.
The Video from 10:47, He expressed frustration at the devaluation of the Naira, comparing the currency’s current value to its higher worth in 2011 and 2019.
He reiterated the union’s concern that the wage offer was inadequate in light of the currency’s devaluation and the resultant increased cost of living.
He said, “Labour also shifted ground from N615,000 to where we are today, N494,000 and we are still prepared to shift ground but the government is no longer willing to move from where they are. All we told them was that we are today is $40, we were $120 in 2011 in terms of value of the currency. In 2019, where we were was something around $92 to $95. So, you can not be giving us this and you think that you have done well for us. No, our problem is actually the value of what they are offering, it’s not the volume.”….Sée Móre