Federal Government has been urged to give tax incentive to private sector who cannot afford to pay the N70,000 minimum wage.
This will serve as ease of burden to the Private Sector in order for them to be able to pay the minimum wage.
Firms with larger operations that already pay beyond the new minimum wage should be excluded from the tax incentive.
A Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Uyo, Akpan Ekpo, said this in a statement.
Uyo said this will be needed because small businesses had been through challenges, including foreign exchange instability and epileptic power supply.
“Some of them (SMEs) were not paying the former amount of N30,000 before it was increased,” he noted.
“There are macroeconomic headwinds, there are structural impediments, and there are multidimensional supply chain challenges. The profitability and sustainability of many businesses are at risk.”
He added that the current operating environment was extremely challenging for most businesses in Nigeria, especially in the real sector and small businesses.
Recall that the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria had called on the Federal Government to fulfil its promise to assist the organised private sector to pay the N70,000 minimum wage.
The Director-General of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Segun Ajayi-Kadir, recently called on President Bola Tinubu to fulfil his promise that the Federal Government would assist the organised private sector to pay the newly approved minimum wage.
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