By Demola Akinyemi, Ilorin

Director General, Michael Imoudu National Institute of Labour Studies (MINILS), Comrade Issa Aremu, has counselled the federal government to mainstream Human Resources in the economic reform agenda in order to achieve the desired ends of economic growth and poverty eradication.

The foremost labour leader who advised while speaking with newsmen during the Third annual Kwara state conference of the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria (CIPM) held at the Institute in Ilorin. also urged stakeholders to initiate monetary policies that will assist the President in eradicating poverty, lowering inflation and ensure a double-digit growth rate.

Comrade Aremu observed that “precisely because worldwide labour creates wealth” Human Resources should be both the “drivers” and “ends” of reform for sustainability.

Speaking about the current inflationary trends, he said “You’re targeting inflation and you’re hiking interest rates. Who can borrow money at 36% interest rate? And you allowed the naira to float in a way that drastically devalued the new minimum wage.

“The minimum wage is significant, but in real terms when you take inflation and devaluation of the naira, you will see that the new minimum wage is even less than the old minimum wage”, he said.

“So, what the President has commendably given with the right hand through collective bargaining with labour has been taken away by the left hand of devaluation. We should initiate monetary policies that will assist the President to eradicate poverty, lower inflation and ensure a double-digit growth rate”

While commending President Bola Tinubu for initiating inevitable reforms, Aremu however said it was time to “rethink” monetary policies that have eroded the purchasing power of working men and women through avoidable devaluation and rising inflation.

According to him, Nigeria faces the “twin crises of low compensation and low productivity” adding that it was time for a wage-led economic recovery for sustainable development.

“While I commend the CIPM for putting human resources at the centre of national discussion because reforms are inevitable despite the challenges involved.

“However, these reforms can only be successful when we carry the human resource, the human beings, along. And in this case, I can say labour is at the heart of it because labour creates wealth”, he said.

“Because, it’s only when you pay them for the work done that you can get the best out of them. There is a direct link with productivity and proper motivation of the workforce”, he stressed.

While he commended President Tinubu and Federal Government, organized labour and the sub-national for the new minimum wage implementation, Aremu however, said that minimum wage is not same as living wage, adding that through sectoral collective bargaining and social dialogue, it was time for wage improvement that would guarantee adequate working and living conditions for enhanced productivity.

He also called on the government to promote more negotiations and collective bargaining in the respective sectors of the economy, in order to start talking about real adequate pay for workers.

He also charged members of the CIPM and all labour market actors to make a case for appropriate monetary policy that would promote decent work , real as opposed to nominal purchasing power.

The DG also said that stakeholders should relook at the monetary policy of wholesale floatation of naira, which he said is not appropriate for developing nation like Nigeria.

“Our currency needs to be well managed.There’s no where in the world you allow your currency to the vagaries of the market forces. CBN should not only be targeting inflation, but target growth and purchasing power of the citizens”

The MINILS Director General, who said that the conference, themed, “Human Resource Management in a VUCAR (Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous, and Risky) World: Building Resilience and Agility”, challenged government to take labour market institutions dealing with human resource more serious though adequate funding and engagement.

“The Federal Government should make labour market institutions partners in the reform agenda of government.)”, he said.