The Bayelsa State Government has approved a minimum wage of N80,000 for local government council staff, following pressure from the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
This decision was announced by the state’s acting governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, during a meeting at the Government House in Yenagoa on Tuesday, December 10.
The meeting included representatives from the NLC, TUC, Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees, Nigerian Union of Teachers, and the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria.
Ewhrudjakpo also assured that the differentials arising from ongoing discussions on the new minimum wage template would be included in the December salaries.
The acting governor emphasized that the new minimum wage had been agreed upon by all relevant stakeholders, including the chairmen of the eight local government councils.
However, he noted that the state government would not adopt the federal government’s template for the consequential adjustment due to its limited financial capacity, and would instead adjust payments in a way that aligns with the state’s financial realities.
On the matter of pensioners, Ewhrudjakpo promised that the state would consider the federal government’s circular for pensioners’ remuneration increase.
He revealed that Bayelsa State had already approved a N10,000 increment for pensioners across the board.
The state’s NLC chairman, Comrade Simon Barnabas, thanked the government for approving the N80,000 minimum wage but urged the government to adopt the federal government’s higher rates for the consequential adjustment and approve the N32,000 increment for pensioners as stated in the recent federal circular.
