Ekiti State Governor Kayode Fayemi has stressed the need for the Federal Government to address the current revenue allocation formula to enable state governments pay the new minimum wage being requested by workers.

Fayemi stated this when he received the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Ayuba Wabba, who paid him a courtesy visit at his office in Ado-Ekiti on Friday.

The Governor, who explained that the N30,000 minimum wage was not a comfortable living wage for workers, said he was convinced that governors would pay if the Federal Government created the enabling environment for them to do so.

He suggested a collective approach by labour leadership, the government and the general public.

The NLC President, who met with the Governor together with some national and state labour union leaders, had solicited the cooperation of all governors in the payment of the N30,000 minimum wage, adding that all states should be able to afford it.

Fayemi said the issue of affordability was key, stating that Ekiti had always paid above the national minimum wage as the state is currently paying N19,350 as against the N18,000 official minimum wage.

He, however, added that for Ekiti State to pay the new N30,000 minimum wage, it would need an additional N2 billion to the current wage bill of N2.6 billion, totalling N4.6 billion. This, he said is the case in many other states.

Ekiti receives about N3 billion in federal allocations monthly.

Earlier, labour leader Wabba had lauded Fayemi for his administration’s record on workers welfare, citing the recent release of N200 million for teacher’s car and housing loans as well as the abolishing of development levies in public primary and secondary schools in the state.

“We know your pedigree and I am not surprised about this. We know you are a friend of workers. In 2012, you were the first to pay the N18,000 minimum wage in the South-West and second in Nigeria. You even paid N19,300,” Wabba said.

•Excerpted from a Saturday Sun report

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