From Joseph Amedu, Lokoja
Local government workers in Kogi State, under the aegis of Joint Action Union, has threatened to go on strike over their insistence on 60 percent salaries against the government’s offer of 40 percent.
JAU, which is made up of the various union leaderships at the local government level, is presently engaging the Kogi State Government on the payment of the October salary.
Workers under JAU said they had consistently been on percentage payment of salaries ranging from 30 to 35 percent.
The JAC, in a meeting on Monday, called for a jack up of the October salary to 60 percent.
A reliable source said before the November 2019 governorship election, workers at the LGAs received 50 percent salaries, adding that afterwards, the salaries for pensioners, teachers, health workers, primary school teachers, local government staffers, ranged between 30 to 35 per cents.
However, the state Commissioner for Information, Kingsley Fanwo, while reacting to the threat of strike action, said there was the issue of redundancy and overloading of council payrolls which needed to be addressed.
He said, “It is common knowledge that the LGAs are carrying more than their capacity and the unions know the facts.
“So, the state government is doing everything possible to improve agriculture and industrialisation so that we can have a diversified economy.”
