The Organised Labour in Abia State has suspended its planned seven-day strike, which was scheduled to begin on Monday. The strike was called off after a meeting between Governor Alex Otti and labour leaders, where the government agreed to address the union’s demands.
The labour union had threatened to strike over the non-payment of the N30,000 minimum wage and the N35,000 palliative wage award, as approved by the Federal Government. However, the state government claimed it was already paying the N30,000 minimum wage, while the labour union disputed this, saying the current wage was N20,100 for state workers and N18,000 for local government workers.
The meeting resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding, which includes the payment of the outstanding minimum wage and palliative wage award, severance allowances to retired directors and permanent secretaries, current leave allowances, and a three-month wage award of N15,000 monthly from July to September 2024. The labour union also advised the government to review gratuity payments.
The labour leaders warned that failure to implement the agreement by July 28 would lead to an indefinite strike, without further notice.