Senate Vows Swift Action On Passage Of Minimum Wage Bill As House Urges Economic Caution

The Senate pledged on Tuesday to fast-track the National Minimum Wage Bill for legislative action once it was forwarded to the National Assembly. 

However, the House of Representatives cautioned the federal government against increasing the minimum wage beyond what the economy could sustain.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the spokesman of the House, Akin Rotimi, emphasized the need to avoid unintended outcomes, such as inflation, layoffs, and other adverse economic consequences.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio assured that the bill would be given legal backing by the federal legislature once negotiations between organised labor and the federal government concluded.

The assurance was given during the Senate's plenary session while reacting to the news of the suspension of the industrial action embarked upon by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC). 

The upper chamber was discussing a motion on the "Urgent Need for the Organised Labour Unions to Call off their Industrial Action" when the news of the strike's suspension was announced by Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau. 

Senator Diket Plang, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Labour and Employment, moved the motion for deliberation at the plenary.