Minimum wage: Workers shut down Enugu

The Enugu State branch of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Tuesday joined their counterparts across the congress to observe the labour ‘National Day of Protest’.
Workers trooped out en masse to participate in the rally that took place at the state secretariat.
It would be recalled that the national leadership of the NLC had directed the protest to register their dismay on the handling of the national minimum wage by the Federal Government.
The Chairman of the NLC in Enugu State, Mr Viginus Nwobodo, described the exercise in the state as a `huge success’ as workers turned out in their numbers.
Nwobodo said that the success of the protest was a pointer to what would happen if labour eventually went on strike.
The chairman who addressed the workers after a peaceful road protest said that the workers were miffed that the Federal Government had failed to transmit the report of the tripartite committee to the National Assembly.
“This protest is as a result of the lingering issue of the national minimum wage. We are not happy that legislative work has not started on the matter,” he said.
He said that workers were running out of patience, adding that they were waiting for further directives from their headquarters.
“We are waiting for further directives from our headquarters and anytime they direct us to commence strike we shall fully comply,” Nwobodo said.