Nation
FG To Harmonise Public Workers’ Salaries
The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to harmonising salaries of workers in the public sector.
Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, stated this at a Two-Day National Forum on Compensation Management organised by Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS) in collaboration with the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission (NSIWC) and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES), in Abuja, Monday.
Mustapha said the presidential committee set up for that purpose had commenced work to ensure that all federal workers across board were remunerated appropriately.
Represented by the Permanent Secretary, Office of the Government of the Federation, Dr Maurice Mbaeri, he said the forum with the theme, “Compensation Management in Nigeria: Resolving Dilemmas, Mainstreaming Milestone’’ was apt and came when there was the need to improve workers’ salaries.
Mustapha said President Muhammadu Buhari had always taken the issue of compensation policy very seriously, adding that he had demonstrated that over time and evidential in the fact that he did not retrench any federal worker in spite of the harsh economic situation.
According to him, the Federal Government has ensured implementation of the National Minimum Wage Act, payment of pension, increment of duty tour allowances, and payment of Special COVID-19 allowance among others.
He noted that the issue of compensation was a recurring decimal in the workplace globally, stating that it had generated interest overtime and had often pitched social partners and institutional actors in the industrial relations system against one another.
According to him, compensation as one of the key elements of relationship had direct relationship with workers’ performance and productivity adding that all these factors were critical to the success of any organisation and the economy at large.
“In Nigeria, at the heart of most industrial challenges is the issue of compensation and remuneration.
“Over the years, industrial sectors and specific enterprises have witnessed mixed reactions in terms of productivity of workers because of incessant industrial actions.
“While some progress have been made by government and other regulatory agencies with respect to establishing certain parameters for effective compensation management, a lot still needs to be done,’’ he said.
He expressed optimism that the discussions from the two-day workshop would produce policies that would reflect adequate compensation for workers.
While noting that government would be ready to make use of the outcome of the forum, Mustapha urged workers to reciprocate government’s gestures by being productive.
Speaking, Chairman, NSIWC, Ekpo Nta said it was high time recurring compensation crisis was brought to an end.
Nta, who doubles as the Chairman of the occasion noted that there had been lots of infractions on wages that needed to be looked into and resolved accordingly.
On monitoring implementation of personnel cost, Nta regretted that not so much attention had been paid to personnel cost as much as capital budget and overhead cost.
He called for more scrutiny of personnel cost to fish out any form of infraction.
“The personnel cost in the 2023 budget is estimated to gulp about N4.99 trillion and this cannot be ignored.
“I hope at the end of 2023, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) would give us clear analysis of what happens with regard to implementation”, Nta said.
The Alliance Française Port Harcourt in conjunction with the Embassy of France Nigeria over the weekend joined the globe to campaign against the 2025 gender- based violence (GBV) with the theme: “16 Days of Activism Against Gender- Based Voice”
The event which took place at the event Hall of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt was in collaboration with the Female in Gaming Network, ( FIGN) and partnership with Nexal a body that seeks to promote online safety and responsible digital behaviour.
The Tide reports that the project which was aimed at promoting digital safety and girls inclusion in Gaming, with the initiative tagged ‘Gameover Gender- Base Violence’was part of the global campaign against gender- based Violence.
The activity which experienced a flavour of festivity was full of fun and excitements as participants took part in tournaments on popular digital games such as Mario kart and EAFC 25, with an intent to creating safer and more inclusive digital spaces.
The Director of the Alliance Française Port Harcourt, Mrs Marina Lacal said that these activities were designed to encourage inclusion of girls, team work and fair play on online gaming spaces, saying that the gaming world reflects these inequalities, where female players are often under represented.
According to her the main objectives of the initiative was to provide a supportive environment for girls and female in gaming network.
“GameOverGBV” is a project created to reshape this landscape by offering an innovative inclusiveness of girls on online digital Gaming community and digital environments that provide opportunities for creativity, learning and connection, but also fight against Gender-Based Violence Digital Gaming,”she said
She however, explained that the Digital Game, sport competitions, was launched to strengthen social and digital skills through games, workshops, and raise awareness among all young participants about respect, equality and digital citizenship.
The Tide News reports that in Port Harcourt, the competition brought together 100 young participants from three major universities: University of Port Harcourt, ( UNIPORT),Ignatius Ajuru University of Education(IAUE) and Rivers State University (RSU)as well as students from four selected secondary schools, Oginigba comprehensive Secondary.School, Vine lnternational, Virgo predicanda lnternational, and Excellent Montessori Secondary school.
“This is an approach where girls and boys can learn, play and collaborate in a more respectful and safe space for young women, while ensuring a safe, enjoyable and respectful digital environment. It also expose young women to cyberbullying, exclusion, sexist comments and online hate,” Mrs. Lacal said.
Earlier, a game developer Sophia Nei and her. team had engaged participants in an interactive session with the theme: “Can Video Games Be Safe Spaces For Girls?”
However, Mrs Nei and her team educated the girls on the benefits and violence on online digital gaming and urged them ( participants)to learn to say ‘No’ to Online hate, sexist and cyber bullying, while encouraging them(students) to stand up for themselves by reporting such issues to the appropriate authority.
Highlight of the competition was the awarding of prizes to winners by the Director of Alliance Française, Mrs Marina Lacal.
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