By Mercy Okhiade
Ikeja, Aug. 1, 2018 (NAN) The Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) warned employers of labour on Wednesday that it was criminal to pay their workers wages below the minimum wage approved by the Federal Government.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the warning comes against the backdrop of the expected announcement of a new minimum wage by the Federal Government later this month.
The Director-General of NECA, Mr Olusegun Oshinowo, gave the warning while speaking in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ikeja.
Oshinowo said that private sector employers should take a cue from the government by paying remunerations not below the government-approved minimum wage.
“We should take note that once the government approves wages, any payment that is less than the national minimum wage is illegal.
“This is because the national minimum wage is backed by an Act of parliament. It has provisions and conditions and there are also exemptions for some employers in the minimum wage Act.
“If there is any employer that does not qualify for the exemptions and pays below the minimum wages such action is contrary to the law.”
The NECA chief said that NECA would not give membership to any employer, paying workers below the national minimum wage and that such employer would even be sanctioned.
“NECA as an organisation will never support any employer member paying below the national minimum wage.
“As much as possible we apply moral suasion to get our members to comply with the law because NECA believes in rule of law and the principles of best practices.
“If any member of NECA falls short of the rule of law we call such member to order. Where the action of the member will embarrass the association, we expel such member.”
Oshinowo, however, noted that some operators in the private sector usually paid their staff above the national minimum wage through institutional reviews of wages.
“The private sector on the average pays 50 or 75 per cent above the national minimum wage. The private sector has an institutionalised machinery for reviewing salaries at two years intervals.
“The national minimum wage was reviewed last in 2011. Between then and now most of our members have reviewed wages not less than two times.
“When you conduct a survey on the minimum wage what an average NECA member company pays, is double the national minimum wage,’’ Oshinowo said.
DMO/AAB/SN
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Edited By Adeboye Ajayi/Silas Nwoha