Mr. Peter Esele, former President, Trade Union Congress (TUC), says the Federal Government has a responsibility to respect the terms of agreement reached with the organised labour on the new minimum wage.

Esele said this on Saturday in Benin in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

He said that failure by government to do so would undermine the spirit and letters of the Minimum Wage Act signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari.

He described as unfortunate, the recent remarks by the Minister of Labour, Dr. Chris Ngige, that the Federal Government could not implement the consequential adjustments in the payment of the new minimum wage as proposed by Labour.

“Does it mean that the various state agencies involved in the negotiations didn’t tabulate the figures to know what is payable or not?

“If the answer is no, that is dereliction of duty and appropriate sanction should be meted out.

“The consequential adjustments which are another sticking point are known to the tripartite committee (Government, Employers and Labour). So it is expected to go seamlessly.

“But sadly, as with everything in Nigeria, it must be fought for, even if agreed upon.

“I foresee a strike action. Hopefully the president, his team and the organised Labour can find a way out to avoid an industrial action,” he said. (NAN)