Labour to suspend proposed strike in Abia, as workers get N15,000 wage award

The proposed indefinite strike earlier planned to kick off on Monday by the organized labour in Abia State is to be relaxed, according to findings by Newspot.

This comes after two days of intensive negotiation between the Abia State government, leadership of the organized labour and members of the joint negotiation council.

According to a communique issued at the end of the dialogue, the Abia State government and the organized labour arrived at payment of N15,000 wage award to civil servants for three months, starting from the end of July 2024.

The communique was signed by Calab Ajagba, the Chief of Staff to Governor Alex Otti and two others on behalf of the Abia State government, while Okoro Ogbonnaya, NLC Chairman, and Ihechi Enogwe, TUC Chairman and others signed for the labour. I.M. Ekwenye was the chairman of the joint negotiation council.

It was gathered that while the labour leaders claimed that Abia workers are only being paid N20,100 minimum wage, Abia state government said that available records before it showed that the N30,000 was actually being paid to the civil servants.

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The State government used the opportunity of the dialogue to explain the reasons for cancelling the command promotions given to civil servants by the past administration of Okezie Ikpeazu, saying that the cancellation was carried out to sanitize the service.

However, it was agreed by the two parties that promotion of all civil servants who are due for promotion would soon commence.

The government also explained that it cannot offset at once, the 16.5 billion naira which the previous administration owed workers in institutions and parastatals in the state but promised to approach the state House of Assembly for a virement to pay the debt in installment.

Deliberations were also made on staff verifications, payment of retired Permanent Secretaries and retired Directors in Abia State civil service, but no agreement was reached on the issue of gratuity, according to the communique.

However, a member of Trade Union Congress, TUC, who pleaded anonymity, while reacting to the communique, alleged that the Chairman of the joint negotiation council, I.M. Ekwenye, who is a retired civil servant, should not have headed the council, as according to him, Ekwenye was not in the right position to feel the present pain of those still in service.