The federal government has said that contrary to trending reports, it is not considering a salary increase for Nigerian workers.
The spokesperson in the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Olajide Oshundun made the clarification in a statement made available to newsmen on Friday.
Earlier in the week, there were reports that the government had put plans in place to increase the salary of civil servants and public officials in the country.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige was said to have announced this on Tuesday while addressing State House correspondents.
Reacting to the claims in a statement released on Friday, the spokesperson said the Minister was quoted out of context as only some “peculiar allowances” are being reviewed and not the salary of workers as widely reported.
He added that the salary of workers cannot be reviewed by the government without involving leaders of organized labour.
“It’s hoped that this rightful step which the Federal Government had embarked upon on compassionate grounds without any prodding or threat to strike will help to cushion the debilitating effects of spiraling inflation especially that which affects food and energy prices (Electricity and Petroleum product),” he said
The statement added, “The Presidential Committee on Salaries (PCS) through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) received recommendations for review of allowances of many Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government.
“Because salary component is not being reviewed for now by the committee, it addressed the allowances component of the requests including the peculiar allowance for Federal Civil Servants amongst others.
“In Labour parlance as par payment for compensation for work done, REMUNERATION or EMOLUMENT is made up of salary component and earned allowance component.
“Therefore, the Federal Government through the PCS could not have engaged on the review of salaries without involving the workers through their unions, represented by these two Labour federation of workers in Nigeria – The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), salary review or renegotiation is part of social dialogue and the product is usually a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) usually agreed to by both parties – employers and employees.”