By Bisi Bamishe
The government of Oyo State has approved N12bn for payment of salaries and pensions for the month of January, in accordance with the newly approved N80,000 minimum wage.
The State Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Prince Dotun Oyelade dropped the hint in a statement made available to the newsmen in Ibadan.
According to Oyelade, this signified the largest tranche of monthly salaries and wages in Southwest Nigeria adding that though Lagos State pays N85,000 minimum wage but has less workforce than Oyo which boasts of over 130,000 workers.
He added that with the approved minimum wage, workers on Grade levels one to six will be enjoying a minimum of N50,000 increment while the salaries of those on Grade level 17 shoot up by over N180,000.
Also, a minimum pension of N25,000 and a 33% pension increment for over 40,000 retirees have been approved with immediate effect.
The Commissioner revealed that the state government has abolished the payment of N4,000 for retirement forms to further ease financial pressure on those planning to retire.
To this end almost N20 million will go back to the pockets of about 4,500 workers who will retire soon.
