The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have agreed to suspend the planned strike for October 3 for 30 days.
At the end of a five-hour closed-door meeting, the Union leaders said all the agreements were given a timeline for implementation. Government representatives and the leaders of the unions signed the agreement.
President Bola Tinubu’s government agreed to pay a wage award of N35,000 only to all federal government workers beginning in September, pending when a new national minimum wage is expected to have been signed into law. It was also agreed that a minimum wage committee should be inaugurated within one month from the date of the agreement.
The government agreed to suspend the value-added tax (VAT) collection on diesel for six months beginning in October and accepted to vote N100 billion for providing high-capacity CNG buses for mass transit in Nigeria, including providing an initial 55,000 CNG conversion kits to start an autogas conversion programme, whilst work is ongoing on CNG stations nationwide. The rollout aims to commence by November with pilots across 10 campuses nationwide.
In addition, the government agreed to implement various tax incentive measures for the private and public sectors, among other issues, including resolving the leadership crises rocking the NURTW and the purported proscription of RTEAN, with a resolution of the ongoing impasse expected by or before October 13.
(NAN)
