November Salaries Paid To 97% Of Our Workers, Kwara Replies NLC

The Kwara State Government announced Tuesday evening that the salaries and bonuses for November have been paid to at least 97% of the 18,466 employees of the state government.

The state Commissioner for Finance, Dr. Hauwa Nuru, said in a statement that the outstanding 4.5 percent who have not received their November pay are those who are yet to register for the State Resident Registration Agency as was directed by the government since July 2024 or those with other pending issues.

Recall that the leadership of the state council of the Nigeria Labour Congress pleaded with the state government to release the withheld November 2024 salaries of its members across the 16 local government areas of the state.

NLC noted in a statement by its state secretary, Isiah Elachochi-Eigege, that about 75 percent of workers in the state who are mostly employees of local government areas are yet to be paid their salaries for November 2024.

Those affected, according to the NLC, included workers under the banner of the Nigeria Union of Local Government Employees, the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, and the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives.

However, the government, in a statement by the press secretary, Ministry of Finance, Babatunde Abdulrasheed, on behalf of the commissioner on Tuesday, also said that 97 percent of the SUBEB teachers and employees have been paid their salary for the month, while the pending three percent are those without KWSRRA bona fide.

“For the local government areas, 77 percent of the workforce has been paid, while the 23 percent remaining are those who have not complied with the KWSRRA requirements,” the statement added.

“These figures of the state, SUBEB, and local government areas contradict the claim that 75 percent or 45 percent of the workforce had not been paid.

“We had earlier engaged with representatives of the NLC, where we provided clear data on how things stood. We also explained how those who have not gotten theirs can go about it if they are truly bona fide workers,” the state government said.

The statement urged any genuine employees who are yet to get their November salary to validate their claims with KWSRRA and the Ministry of Finance.

“The exercise to register every resident in the state for accurate data, security purposes, and sanitization of the payroll system is an endeavor that every citizen should support. We assure workers that the administration remains committed to prompt payment of their salary and welfare, as has been the hallmark of the government.

“The government is committed to resolving all outstanding issues so that no bona fide worker is left unpaid. We urge our compatriots in the labour unions to fully support this transparency initiative, which is meant to serve the interests of everyone,” the statement added.