By Onyewuchi Ojinnaka
The Federal Government has warned private employers that failure to pay the new minimum wage of N70,000 will result in going to jail.
The warning was made by the Director of Employment and Wages, John Nyamali at the 13th Annual General Meeting of the Employers Association for Private Employment Agencies of Nigeria.
Nyamali who represented the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment Kachollom Daju at the AGM said that paying less than N70,000 is now a punishable offence.
The government said that no Nigerian worker should earn less than N70,000, and private employment agencies must ensure contracts reflect this minimum wage.
“The minimum wage is now a law, and as a result, it is a punishable crime for any employer to pay less than N70,000 to any of its workers”.
Emphasizing the necessity of the updated wage to address current economic conditions, he said the government asserted that no Nigerian worker, whether in public or private employment, should earn less than this minimum.
“The private employment agencies should make it compulsory in any contract they take from their principal that their workers should not earn less than the minimum wage. The least paid worker in Nigeria should earn N70,000, and I think that should be after all deductions.
“The minimum wage is a law, and you can be jailed if you fail to implement it. The Federal Government is committed to ensuring that the least paid worker goes home with N70,000,” she said.
In his remarks, the President of the Employers Association for Private Employment Agencies of Nigeria, Dr Olufemi Ogunlowo called for clarity on whether the N70,000 minimum wage applies net or gross.
He urged the government and Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to address any ambiguities in the Act.
Also speaking, Chairperson of the NLC, Lagos State chapter, Funmilayo Sessi, urged private employers to promptly implement the N70,000 minimum wage.