The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) have suspended the planned strike to commence on Wednesday to protest the removal of the petrol subsidy.
The groups announced the suspension of the proposed strike after a meeting of its leaders and representatives of the federal government.
The announcement was contained in a statement signed by Festus Osifo and Nuru Toro for the TUC, Joseph Ajaero and Emmanuek Ugboaja for the NLC, while Speaker of the House, Femi Gbajabiamila and Kachollom Daju, Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Labour signed for the FG.
The labour keaders and representatives of the federal government are to reconvene on June 19 to further the negotiation.
Joe Ajaero, president of the NLC, and his team had arrived at the presidential villa at about 5:45 pm on Monday.
Shortly after the commencement of Monday’s sit-down, the national industrial court restrained TUC and NLC from embarking on the industrial action.
Delivering the ruling on Monday, Olufunke Anuwe, the presiding judge, said the unions should halt the planned strike %pending the hearing and determination of the ex parte motion filed by the federal government.
The president’s pronouncement immediately led to a resurfacing of queues at petrol stations and a hike in the pump price of the product across the country.
At the end of the meeting, the labour leaders and the government team agreed on a 7-point resolution, including an agreement to establish a joint committee to review the proposal for any wage increase or award and establish a framework and timeline for implementation.
Part of the resolution also was for the federal government, the TUC and the NLC to review the World Bank-financed cash transfer scheme and propose the inclusion of low-income earners in the programme.
Others are that the federal government and organised labour would revive the CNG conversion programme earlier agreed with Labor centres in 2021 and work out detailed implementation and timing.
They are to review issues hindering effective delivery in the education sector and propose solutions for implementation as well as look into and establish the framework for completion of the rehabilitation of the nation’s refineries.
The federal government is to provide a framework for the maintenance of roads and the expansion of rail networks across the country.
Consequently, the parties agree that the NLC should suspend the notice of strike henceforth to enable further consultations.
The NLC and TUC are also to maintain dialogue with FG to achieve closure on the issues and to meetnon June 19 to agree on an implementation framework.