May Day: Plateau NLC Chairman Commends Plateau Civil Servants, Promises to End Ghost Workers Syndrome 

Yakubu Busari

The Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Plateau state, Comrade Eugene Manji has vowed to approach the problem of ghost workers within the civil service if the Plateau state government is willing to give him the maximum cooperation and to also consider prompt payment of retirees their pensioners in the newly implemented 30,000 minimum wage.

The NLC Chairman expressed satisfaction with the turnout of civil servants at the Rwang-Pam Township stadium during the May Day celebration where different unions filled out in match past which was led by various members of the Nigerian Labor Congress.

Comrade Manji disclosed that “Minimum wage goes side by side with the pension; the constitution says anytime there is an increase in the minimum wage, automatically pensioners should also benefit.”

Also affiliated unions, including NUJ Plateau state council led by its chairman Mr. Paul Jatau, NUJ members participated for the first time ever.

The (NLC) Chairman had said Labour are not surprised on the re-election of Governor Simon Lalong as he has kept faith with payment of salaries since he assumed office in 2015.

“We are not surprised at your emergence noting your popularity among Plateau workers. We commend Mr. Governor for the prompt payment of workers salary, payment of “No work, No pay”, payment of 2012 Leave Transport Allowance among meeting other several issues inherited by this administration.”

He said they will not compromise the negotiation on the implementation of the minimum wage and urged the Government to increase the payment of pension and gratuity of to retired workers as clearly stated in the law.

Chairman Civil Society Organisations in Plateau state, Steve Aluko applauded Lalong for payment of salaries for four years and urged him not to renege on the covenant that workers enter into in 2015.

He commended the Organized Labour in the state for their consistency in partnering with the state government and for their services through thick and thin.

The Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong said his administration will pay the N30, 000 National Minimum approved by President Muhammadu Buhari Federal Government.

Governor, represented by the Head of Civil Service, Mr. Izam Azi, governor Lalong he is committed to continuing with the prompt payment of salaries in the state.

“I was a member of the National Minimum Wage Committee representing the Nigeria Governor’s Forum and I have pledged to stand by the resolution reach thereof.

“We would assiduously work hard with you to improve Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of the state so as to meet up with the payment of the new Minimum Wage.”

The governor urged workers to collaborate with him and expose ghost workers in the State Civil Service, saying that will provide more resources to fund the minimum wage.

The governor gave the commendation in an address on the occasion of 2019 Workers Day Celebration in the state.

“While it will be utterly impossible for me to fully appreciate the contributions of Organized Labour in Plateau  State to where we are today as a State, let me thank you for your services through good times and bad, through thick and thin”.

The governor used the occasion to felicitate with workers in the state while describing the civil service as the engine room of government at all levels.

“May I use this occasion to felicitate with all of us on another Worker’s Day. No doubt, our workforce is the engine room of government at all levels. Politicians come and go but you keep the wheels of administration turning through successive governments.

The Labour Force remains the embodiment of institutional memory in governance and a principal factor of productivity in the system”.

“We cannot pretend today that there are no issues which remain unresolved around the welfare of our Labour Force. There are indeed several such issues, but the most pressing of them all, at least to my Administration, is how to finally settle the remaining unpaid salaries due to our genuine workers.

For the bulk of our workers who were cleared without any delays during the screening exercise which ended in 2019.

The relative fewer numbers that were later re-added to the workforce after they failed screening may be owed more depending on when they were returned to the payroll.

This category includes those whose credentials were denied as fake by their schools but who later managed to resolve their differences with such institutions to the satisfaction of the government.

It will also be recalled that we inherited substantial liabilities in the form of unpaid workers’ remuneration from previous administrations; however, since the government is a continuum, we have continued to treat those liabilities as ours and to tackle them as much as we can from our own meager income.

The leadership of Organized Labour in the State has been consistent in partnering with us whenever we receive extraordinary funds into the state. They can attest that whatever we agreed should go to salaries, have always gone to salaries.

My promise to all my workers in Plateau State is that I will always be straightforward with them. I will work as hard as I can to make sure that we meet up with monthly salary payments, no matter how small the income of the state. We shall also continue to tackle the arrears as frequently and as aggressively as possible.

We are going to key into the new minimum wage recently signed into law by Mr. President. As usual, we shall sit down with your leadership to fashion out workable modalities for this.

On a brighter note, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released her Labour Force Statistics this week and our dear Kogi State is one of only 9 states out of 36 which recorded a reduction in unemployment and underemployment rates despite a general increase in the overall national rate.

It gladdens my heart when the benefits of our difficult but necessary Civil Service and Pension Reforms are confirmed by credible institutions. We trust that when it all matures, our workers will be the greatest beneficiaries.

I am determined to be that Governor who will bequeath to Plateau State a sanitized, digitized and motivated modern workforce”.