Labour threatens strike over new minimum wage in Cross River

Labour unions in Cross River have directed state civil servants to embark on a two-day warning strike over the non-implementation of the new minimum wage.

The strike action, which was signed by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), is set to commence from November 24 midnight to 26, 2024.

This is following a staged walkout from a scheduled meeting held on Monday, November 18, 2024, with state government officials who formed members of the committee at the office of the State Head of Service, Mr Innocent Eteng, in Calabar.

According to the labour leaders, last week, when the committee met for the first time, the meeting ended in a stalemate when they perceived delayed tactics by the government to postpone the meeting to January next year

The labour unions are demanding a new national minimum wage of N70,000 from the state government.

The state civil servants expressed disappointment when the governor, Senator Bassey Otu announced a new minimum wage of N40,000 on the 1st of May, during the International Worker’s Day celebration at the U.J Essueine Stadium in Calabar.

While giving instances of Edo, Lagos, Rivers, and a few other governors, the workers said they were of high hope before the unexpected announcement of N40,000.

But the governor, while addressing the workers at the U.J Essueine Stadium, said that due to the state’s lean resources, caused by the statutory federal allocation aggravated by the unfavourable state Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the new minimum wage of N40,000 would be in line with realities rather than sentiments.