The Cross River Government has handed a four-week ultimatum to the Joint Public Service Negotiating and Implementation Committee for the N70,000 Minimum Wage to conclude its assignment.
The commissioner for information, Erasmus Ekpang, in an interview in Calabar on Monday, November 11, 2024, said that the committee, inaugurated and chaired by the Head of Service, Innocent Eteng.
The committee is saddled with the responsibility of agreeing on modalities to fashion out an acceptable minimum wage for the state civil servants.
Mr Ekpang, however, said that the new wage that would be agreed upon should be such that would not hurt the state revenue.
“The governor has always maintained his desire to make the state workers happy by enhancing their welfare and working environment.
“The negotiation for the new minimum wage is to be concluded within the next four weeks and this is one of such moves.
“However, what will be agreed on and its implementation by the committee will be one that will not affect the smooth running of the government or other sectors of the state economy,” Mr Ekpang said.
The governor of Cross River State, Bassey Otu had constituted a 16-member committee to negotiate a new minimum wage with labour in the state.
The membership of the committee included Gregory Olayi and Monday Ogbodum as well as the chairmen of the Nigerian Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress.