Maritime Workers Push for Implementation of President Bola Tinubu’s 35,000 Provisional Wage Award

By DAPO OLAWUNI

The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has urged government parastatals and private operators in the maritime sector to comply with the N35,000 provisional wage award recently signed by President Bola Tinubu for government workers.

The N35,000, according to President Tinubu, is to be paid for the next six months in order to cushion the effect of the fuel subsidy removal and its attendant economic hardships.

Speaking exclusively with DAILY TREND on Thursday, President General of MWUN, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju said that the union has written all agencies of government and terminals, warning that any agency or company that fails to comply with the directive would face workers unrest.

Already, he said that some companies have been complying with the President’s directive. These include; APM Terminals, WACT, OFT Onne and Lekki Deep Seaport

According to Adeyanju, “The approval was endorsed by all stakeholders and the President has announced it, Federal is N35,000 while State is N25,000.

“The Maritime Workers Union is covered by these provisions because NPA is a federal government agency, the award covers everybody that are working under them, it covers both the private and government agency.

“We are now telling everyone to fall in line, we have written to all stakeholders, attaching the agreement signed by the government and even the directive signed by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) urging all the affiliates to go and negotiate the award before we go fully into the implementationof a new minimum wage.

“It is an incentive to cushion the hardship that everyone is passing through, so they must look for the money.

“Some terminal operators have already paid, APMT have paid, in Port Harcourt, WACT have paid, OFT in Onne have paid, even the Lekki Deep Seaport have paid.
So, what stops other parastatals from paying?

“It is suppose to be paid for six months before the next negotiation of wages. If anybody fails to pay it, then we would declare trade dispute against them.
Some are paying it monthly, while some are paying it upfront.

“The Federal Government only assisted the state by giving them that billions. But Federal parastatals that falls under IGR should pay” he said