Federal government workers have told EQ they now go to work twice or three times a week owing to the prolonged implementation of the N70,000 minimum wage, more than two months after its approval.

Some of these workers told EQ that they’ve had to stop going to work five days a week due to the delayed implementation and the consistent increase in fuel prices.

One of them, a worker at the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Abuja, told EQ on Friday that all they know about the implementation of the new wage is what is being reported in the media.

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He also said workers were paid according to the N30,000 minimum wage scale for their August salaries, and that no explanation has been provided for the delay.

“The FG has yet to commence payment of the new minimum wage, and we have not heard anything about the cause except for what we can gather from the media. However, a committee was set up last week to create a template for federal government workers,” he told EQ.

“People now go to work two or three times a week depending on their distance from the office. No one goes to work five days a week anymore.”

Another public servant, who works at the Public Complaints Commission (PCC), said that before President Bola Tinubu’s inauguration on 29 May 2023, they used to go to the office five days a week, but with his removal of the fuel subsidy and the latest increase in fuel prices, they now work only twice a week.

“Immediately after the fuel price was increased following Tinubu’s inauguration, everyone started working three days a week. We would all go to work on Mondays, and people would choose any other two days of the week they preferred to be in the office,” she told EQ on Friday.

“But with the latest increase in fuel prices, where we now buy fuel for as much as N1,200 per litre, work has been reduced to two days a week.”

She said the delay in implementation has not only affected their commute to work but also the quality of service they deliver to the public.

“On days when we are not in the office, we stay at home and do nothing, as we do not work from home.

“In my organisation, we didn’t do a lot of work before, but now our productivity and quality of work have really dropped. For example, if you come in on Monday and start working on a report but don’t finish it, the next time you’ll get to work on it might be Friday. Not many people come in on Fridays, so the quality of our work has dropped. It feels like we are barely doing anything now, and fewer people are coming to work.

“It’s not just my organisation; this is happening in other government-owned organisations as well.”

She said this decision is premised on the fact that transportation is now expensive and there has been no increase in their salaries.

On July 18, Tinubu approved the N70,000 minimum wage following months of back and forth with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC).

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However, the government did not inaugurate a committee for the adjustment in salaries until September 13. It inaugurated a Committee on Consequential Adjustments in Salaries and said its objective is to negotiate and agree on consequential salary adjustments and develop a template to implement the approved wage.

Members of this committee are drawn from the National Salaries, Incomes and Wages Commission (NSIWC), the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, and trade unions.

EQ called the phone number listed on the NSIWC website for answers regarding the expected date of implementation, but the number was switched off. A text message sent to the number had not received a response by press time.

The post With Delayed Implementation of New Minimum Wage, Public Servants Now Go to Work Twice a Week appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.