By Ifunanya Obeme-Ndukwe
Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has approved a new minimum wage of N85,000 for civil servants under the employ of the Rivers State Government.
The decision was reached during a closed-door meeting chaired by the Governor, attended by representatives of organized labour under the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council at the Government House in Port Harcourt on Friday.
After the meeting, the Head of Rivers State Civil Service, Dr George Nwaeke, speaking on behalf of the government, confirmed the approval of the new minimum wage by Governor Fubara
According to Nwaeke, the implementation will commence in November 2024.
Regarding potential arrears of the new wage, Nwaeke stated that a technical committee has been established to develop a feasible payment plan addressing the arrears.
Nwaeke said, “He, Gov Fubara has pronounced a figure that is higher than the National Minimum Wage. He pronounced a sum of N85,000.00, which is higher than the minimum wage that was prescribed nationally.
“So, as the Head of Service and a major stakeholder in the labour family, I am very happy to say that the Rivers State Civil Servants have never had it this good since the inception of this State.
“The labour union leaders and all the other major stakeholders were happy with this development,” he added.
“Issues of arrears will be worked out by the committee that I am going to be Deputy to the SSG. We are already going to work on it in a technical committee that will now get the nitty gritty of the payment and inform the press later.”
Rivers State Chairman of the Joint Public Service Negotiating Council, Emecheta Chuku, noted that this was their first meeting with Governor Fubara to discuss the new wage, which aligns with the Federal Government’s approved rate. Chuku expressed satisfaction with the N85,000 wage, highlighting it as a gesture of goodwill towards workers.
He said, “For the Governor to come, against all the crisis, against all the things that he is facing and more, to say he will pay N85,000.00 minimum wage, I think our hearts are full of joy.
“Of course, we have no doubt, knowing the kind of person we have as our Governor. He is a decent man; very responsible enough; and grew through the rank and file of the system. He understands what it takes to earn a living salary; he understands the difference between gifting money and paying somebody a salary that can sustain him or her from the first day to the last day of the month.”
Similarly, the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Rivers State Chapter, Comrade Alex Agwanwor, emphasized that Rivers State now surpasses Lagos State with the highest minimum wage for civil servants in Nigeria.
He stressed, “Why do I say that? Lagos State said N85,000.00 and Rivers State is paying N85,000.00. The IGRs of Lagos State and Rivers State are not the same. So, for the Governor to agree to pay the same rate with Lagos, that means we are at the top of it.
“We are the best, and we want to continue to commend the Governor. We assure him that, as far as this State is concerned, labour is going to stand with him. We will be with him even until the next eight years.
“I want to commend His Excellency, Executive Governor of Rivers State, our own Number One Worker in Rivers State, he has, once again, proven that the workers in Rivers State gave him an award on May Day as the Champion of Labour, as the Most Labour-Friendly Governor in Nigeria. He, again, has shown that to us today, and I want to commend him.”
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