The Governor of Anambra State, Charles Chukwuma Soludo, has shared his view as a professor of economics regarding the new Nigerian minimum wage.
The Governor of Anambra State, Charles Chukwuma Soludo, has shared his view as a professor of economics regarding the new Nigerian minimum wage.
He said, “I am not against paying my workers a minimum wage of 250k or any agreement between the federal government and organized Labour. But the fact is that Nigerians think the minimum wage is only for government employees. They don’t know that the private sector is included. If you have five workers or more, any agreement between the federal government and organized labour is the minimum salary you must pay your workers.
Right now in Nigeria, small and medium enterprises are the largest employers, employing over 45 million Nigerians. If certain amounts are implemented, believe me, a lot of these small businesses will close. Last time, I had discussions with some SMEs in Anambra. The first person was the proprietor of a school in Anambra, who had about 36 workers, including drivers and cleaners. I asked him what his opinion on this minimum wage was. He replied that the government should pay workers whatever they demand, as things are very hard. I then told him that he is also included, that if 250k is the minimum wage, that should be the minimum salary he pays any of his workers. Then the man replied, ‘No, they should not agree with that amount, or else he will close the school or increase the school fees by 300%, which will cause everyone to leave the school.’
I also interviewed a poultry farmer and a water bottle company owner. None of them knew what the minimum wage was about; they only thought it was for the government.
As I said earlier, Anambra State can pay their workers any minimum wage they agree on, but believe me, in the next year, Nigeria will regret it. Nigeria should remember the Udorji Award when workers’ salaries were doubled, but after a few months, they realized they were better off with the old salaries.
So, the federal government and organized Labour should think carefully and understand the implications of paying a minimum wage above your per capita income. The consequences will be terrible for Nigerians, especially the workers,” the governor concluded.
