By Okey  Ndiribe
ABUJA — In its determination to force the public and private  sectors to implement the  new national minimum wage law, the  Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), yesterday,  extended its ultimatum to  the federal,  state  and local governments by one week.

The ultimatum would expire next Wednesday,  after which a three-day nation-wide warning strike would commence on July 20.
Should the three tiers of government still refuse to effect the  N18,000 as the nation’s minimum wage after the warning strike, an indefinite strike would be declared by the labour umbrella body.

This was disclosed in Abuja yesterday by President of the NLC, Comrade Abdulwaheed  Omar, at a press conference after the National Executive Committee, NEC, held an emergency meeting over the national minimum wage issue.

The NLC had earlier issued a two-week ultimatum to the three tiers of government which is supposed to expire tomorrow.

According to the NLC President, “the NEC of NLC  has painfully observed that over three months since the New National  Minimum  Wage became law, no government whether federal, state or local  has implemented it. Also no private sector employer has paid the new wages.”

He further observed that although many state governments had  promised to pay the new  wage, there is no negotiated  payment table on which the minimum wage is based. He added that state governors have allowed their colleagues to hold them to ransom on the implementation of the new minimum wage.

According to him, even the Federal Government has  run  foul  of the Minimum wage Law.
He continued: “ The attempted decision by the Federal Government  to make the  new National Minimum wage implementation applicable to  only workers on Grade Level 01-06 in the  Federal civil Service is not acceptable to us’.

He maintained that the National Minimum wage has national applicability and affects all workers irrespective of  sector or grade level.
The NLC president expressed regret that  the Federal government could not set a  good example as an employer of labour by paying above the N18,000 minimum wage

“Given the non-implementation of the  National Minimum wage law by  the Federal, State and Local Governments,  as well as the private sector, the labour movement  is left with no alternative than to defend the Minimum Wage law, in the interest of the  working people and the Fundamental Human Rights of the Nigerian Populace to live above poverty line”  he concluded.