National Assembly Reschedules Minimum Wage Bill Submission

National Assembly Reschedules Minimum Wage Bill Submission

The National Assembly has postponed the transmission of the minimum wage bill, which may now be sent to President Bola Tinubu by Monday. The bill, which underwent its second and third readings in both chambers of the legislature shortly after being sent by the President, was approved separately by the Senate and the House of Representatives on Tuesday…….. CONTINUE READING

Originally, the National Assembly planned to transmit the bill on Thursday, but it has yet to reach the presidency for assent.

Senator Abdullahi Gumel, Senior Special Assistant on National Assembly Matters, confirmed the delay in an interview with Punch on Saturday. He explained, “We delayed the transmission of the Minimum Wage bill because the money bills—the ₦6.2 trillion 2024 Appropriation Bill (Amended) and the Finance Bill—were not ready. The Appropriation Committees still needed to finalize some details on these bills, so there was no point in transmitting the Minimum Wage bill without the accompanying bills that cover the funding required.”

Senator Gumel also mentioned that the National Assembly leadership intends to personally deliver the bills to the President. “The leadership wants to present the bills to the President themselves, so they plan to do this either this weekend or by Monday,” he added.

Earlier, President Tinubu had sent the Minimum Wage Bill to the National Assembly through an executive communication for consideration and passage. He also requested that the lawmakers expedite the bill to amend the National Minimum Wage Act 2019, increasing the minimum wage from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000, and reducing the review period for the wage from five years to three years. This proposal followed an agreement between President Tinubu and labor leaders on the new minimum wage during a meeting at the Aso Presidential Villa in Abuja.