New Minimum Wage: Ngige Reveals When Payment Will Take Effect

The Federal Government has assured that the payment of the new minimum wage would take immediate effect.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, who gave the assurance while speaking with newsmen yesterday in Abuja, stated that the payment cuts across both the public and private sectors.

Ngige said the consequential adjustment agreed upon were as follows:

“For COMES wage structure grade level 7 gets 23%, level 8 gets 20%, level 9 gets 19%, levels 10 to 14 get 16% while levels 15 to 17 get 14%. “For those on the second category of wages structure, CONHES , CONRRISE, CONTISS etc, level 7 gets 22.2%, levels 8 to 14 get 16%, levels 15 to 17 get 10.5%.”

The Minister stated that the third category of the country’s “wage structure which includes the military and paramilitary was also factored in the agreement since they are not in the civil service, theirs would be communicated through the appropriate channels.”

We had reported that the federal government and the labor unions finally sorted out the issues of consequential adjustment for other categories of workers after three days of the meeting which ended early today.

Under the agreement reached, the core civil servants on grade level 7 are to get (23.2 per cent) adjustment; grade level 8 (20 per cent); grade level 9 (19 per cent); grade levels 10 to14 (16 per cent); and grade levels 15 to 17, (14 per cent).