Why governors flout minimum wage law – Onyeka

According to Chris Onyeka, the Assistant General Secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress, a number of state governors are disobeying the Minimum Wage Act because they do not respect the law's sacredness.

In an interview on Monday, Onyeka discussed the minimum wage law and its implementation in Abuja.

Workers are waiting impatiently for a new minimum wage to become law, while 15 states have not yet implemented the N30,000 wage that was enacted in 2019, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.

Despite the states' increased revenue following the removal of fuel subsidies and the resulting hardship from the increase in petrol prices, the states continue to refuse to pay their employees the minimum wage.

NAN claims that the states yet to implement the minimum wage, in defiant of the 2019 Act, are, Abia, Bayelsa, Delta, Enugu, Nasarawa, Adamawa, Gombe, Niger, Borno, Sokoto, Anambra, Imo, Benue, Taraba and Zamfara.
A state governor who does not respect the rule of law will be more likely to break it, according to Onyeka.

A significant portion of these governors and their handlers have a history of breaking the law in order to get to power, as can be seen by looking into their backgrounds.
"Are they going to abide by the National Minimum Wage Act now?"

According to the labour leader, many governors are reluctant to give civil servants their salaries because they believe they own the state's resources and are thus unwilling to share them with the workers who generate the wealth.

Some governors do not prioritise worker salaries because they mistakenly think that they can be delayed or fiddled with without repercussions.

He said, "But they forget that employees are people who depend on their pay to meet their basic needs."

According to Onyeka, there is a well-known lack of fiscal discipline in many states, and some governors have appropriated state funds for their own personal gain out of personal greed.

The labour leader emphasised the need to stop wasting money and reduce the expense of governance at all levels.

He listed the steps, which included cutting back on the number of political appointees in order to cut expenses and the number of official, operational, and logistical vehicles.
According to Onyeka, the pay and benefits received by appointed and elected officials in the three branches of government ought to correspond with those of civil servants.

According to him, procurement procedures should be streamlined by all levels of government to guarantee accountability, integrity, fiscal restraint, and transparency.

"Governors ought to maintain fiscal integrity, avoid fund transfers, and cease enacting legislation that permits state plunder.

"Instead of constantly being in Abuja and spending a lot of money maintaining two state houses, they should spend more time in their states," he stated.

In response to a question about how to force the governors to abide by the minimum wage legislation, the labour leader suggested applying the rules of law enforcement.

He claims that provisions in the National Minimum Wage Act handle compliance and monitoring, but he also points out that enforcement presents a challenge.

"The Federal grant to these states, after it is established that they are habitual breakers of the law, should be sequestered until they are compelled to pay.
"Labour unions ought to be given more authority and assistance in their efforts to hold such states accountable.

To properly fulfil its duties, the judiciary—particularly the National Industrial Court—should be reinforced.

He declared, "The court ought to issue enforceable garnishee orders against such state governments in addition to rendering decisions."

Onyeka went on to say that organised labour has the right to strike and that the federal government has a duty to protect these workers' rights so they can freely exercise their legal ones.