*Says ‘no work-no pay’ Obasanjo initiative
The Federal Government will take a final position on the new national minimum wage on Monday, after an enlarged meeting of all key stakeholders including state governors, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, has said.
Ngige said Friday that the no-work, no-pay labour policy was initiated during the tenure of former president Olusegun Obasanjo. The Federal Executive Council (FEC) had penultimate Wednesday approved the implementation of the white paper on the policy.
Ngige told State House reporters yesterday that the policy was passed by the National Assembly in 2004 and that Obasanjo assented to it.
“The issue of no-work, no-pay is not a new thing, it is an existing law passed by the National Assembly in 2004 and assented to by Obasanjo.
The law protects both employers and employees. We are just re- echoing it. It is not anything punitive or new, it has been around since,” he said.
After the meeting, he said President Muhammadu Buhari would transmit a bill on the new national minimum wage to the National Assembly for consideration and passage. He said the National Assembly would organize a public hearing on the bill to enable the public contribute to the draft law.
