Bauchi workers threaten strike over salary cuts

The Joint Negotiations Council in Bauchi State has threatened to embark on an indefinite industrial action if the state government goes ahead with its plans to deduct two per cent from worker's salary to fund the orphans and vulnerable children ministry.
The council's secretary, Comrade Ali Ahmed, who addressed newsmen in Bauchi said, "We heard that the state government has signed the bill passed by the state House of Assembly to deduct two per cent from workers salary to fund the newly created ministry for orphans and vulnerable children. We want to remind the state government that we are opposed to the deduction of workers' salaries to fund government activities or people oriented programmes. We are not opposing the creation of the ministry or other government laudable programmes, but what we don't want is deduction of workers' salary to fund government projects".

He said the 18,000 minimum wage is a law which is in the exclusive list not the concurrent list, and as such, the state Assembly has no right to temper with it. Ahmed, who said the law states that no one should increase or reduce workers salary without informing all stake holders, said in this case, labour unions were not contacted by either the state government or the state Assembly before they passed the bill into law.

"If government implements it, we will have no option but to shut down the state," he added.

Ahmed noted that the recent agreement that workers salary be deducted by 10 per cent for a period of four months is not a law but a temporary arrangement taken in view of the dwindling resources of the state.