Ondo revenue staff protest over unpaid minimum wage

Workers of the Ondo State Internal Revenue Service (ODIRS) in their numbers on Thursday stormed the revenue house as they protested over the nonpayment of the new minimum wage by the state government.

The protesting workers, who barricaded roads leading to the office, lamented that they received the old salary after assurances that minimum wage would be paid.

Our correspondent gathered that other workers within the state civil service had received a new minimum wage following a pledge made by Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa during the build-up to last month’s election.

According to the ODIRS staff, there is a sharp contrast between the allowances of top executives and the meagre wages of junior staff in the establishment.

Armed with placards of various inscriptions, they vowed to sustain the protest until the authorities meet their demands, stressing that they had tabled their grievances before the management and decided to take the steps to protest after no positive response.

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While accusing the management of the ODIRS of insensitivity to the plight of workers, they urged the state government to urgently look into their demands to avoid a strike, saying they deserved better remuneration as revenue officers.

Meanwhile, the special adviser to the governor on union matters, Comrade Bola Taiwo, described the protest as a minor issue that will be resolved with the assurance that their demands will be addressed.
He said, “This protest is a minor issue because all core civil servants, including local government employees, parliamentary staff, and political appointees, have received their salaries.

“The affected workers of the ODIRS are from the private sector, not public servants, but the governor directed yesterday that they should not be paid the old salary but the new minimum wage.

“We asked for their demands, but they provided none. We are unsure of the protest’s motivation. Normally, they should have submitted a formal letter of demand to the government.”