A meeting initiated by the federal government to avert an impending nationwide indefinite strike has commenced at the Chief of Staff’s Conference Room in the State House, Abuja.
The meeting, which began at 3:25 pm after the arrival of labor representatives, later went into a closed-door session.
Leading the labor delegation was Joe Ajaero, the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC). The delegation also included Nuhu Toro, the Secretary of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), and Emma Ugbaja from the NLC.
On the government side, the team was headed by Femi Gbajabiamila, the Chief of Staff to the President. Other government team members included Dr. Folasade Yemi-Esan, the Head of Service of the Federation; Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser (NSA); Simon Lalong, the Minister of Labour and Employment; Nkeiruka Onyejecha, the Minister of State; Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance; Atiku Bagudu, the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning; and Beta Edu, the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.
Additionally, several directors from the Ministry of Labour and Employment were in attendance.
Notably, there was no formal opening ceremony for the meeting.
A previously scheduled meeting last Friday between the government and labor, also at the State House, did not take place as organized labor representatives opted not to attend.
