KEY POINTS

• FCT workers are demanding that the N70,000 minimum wage be implemented by December 2024, and not January 2025.
• Deferring implementation until the start of January would push wage arrears from four to five months, unions say.
• They, also demand peculiar allowances, wage awards and pay parity with FCTA staff, amongst other rights.

Federal Capital Territory (FCT) workers strike led by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) has gone on for its 11th day with worker negotiations with Area Council Chairmen remain deadlocked.

The biggest problem of contention is the timeline for the implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage.

The FCT workers, namely the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), want the wage increase implemented in December 2024, while Area Council Chairmen have suggested January 2025 as the implementation date.

Union want immediate implementation to reduce arrears

The FCT Chairman of NULGE, Abdullahi Kabir, speaking on the matter faulted the proposal which he says will increase wage arrears to five months against four months in the December proposal.

The union has been insisting that it starts in December while the Council Chairmen are appealing that we allow them to implement it in January,” he said. That means if it comes into force in January, arrears would reach five months. If they are going to do it in December, arrears will have been four months by then, Kabir explained.

He also said the strike would persist until the NLC issued a counter directive and that no formal agreement had been reached with the Area Council Chairmen.

Wage awards, pay discrepancies, peculiar allowances

Apart from demanding the N70,000 minimum wage, FCT workers also submitted other grievances such as implementation of peculiar allowances for local government workers among others. Kabir argued that the local government workers have same conditions with the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) staff, hence both categories should be entitled to same benefits.

Local government workers haven’t received their peculiar allowances. FCTA has received its peculiar allowances.” Kabir noted that we pay the same rent, we go to the same markets.

Of equal importance is the non payment of 25% Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) and Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) allowances and other wage awards. Workers say when other categories of workers have been given these allowances, local government workers should not be left behind.

The unique status of FCT as a key factor in worker demands

He also noted that the FCT is a special territory, and its Minister acts as Governor for the FCT in the office of the President, Bola Tinubu. That is why the FCT is different from other states. President Bola Tinubu is being represented by the FCT Minister as the Governor of the FCT. The FCT is President Bola Tinubu. “We are supposed to benefit from all these things, ” he said.

The FCT workers, however, contend that their rights should be similar to the FCTA workers because the FCT is under the direct supervision of the federal government.

The strike, however, continues as workers said they won’t resume work until a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is signed with the Area Council Chairmen. That means the strike has not ended even if you take the mace from them and mop up the Assembly except they call and say this MoU or agreement is what we have and we agree with it.” And so then we will know how to sort ourselves, said Kabir.

Attempts to have comments from the FCT Council Chairman of NLC, Stephen Knabayi proved abortive as he neither picked his phone nor responded to messages at the time of filing this report.