Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (HoCSF), says the Federal Government has not abandoned the issue of salary harmonisation in the civil service.
Yemi-Esan made the disclosure during a chat with media executives on Wednesday in Abuja, being part of activities to mark 2024 Civil Service Week.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports the theme for 2024 celebration is ‘Educate an African Fit for the 21st Century: Building Resilient Education Systems for Increased Access to Inclusive, Lifelong, Quality and Relevant Learning in Africa’.
Yemi-Esan said salary harmonisation would go through gradual processes because it would be a difficult task to bring down those who were already receiving higher pay.
NAN reports that civil servants in some federal parastatals agencies have been agitating over higher salaries being received by some civil servants in some other government agencies.
The situation had caused some civil servants to demand harmonisation, so as to balance the gap, especially looking at the economic realities and the fact that they all go to the same market.
The HoCSF explained that in addressing the issue, the first step they took was the approval of peculiar allowance, which was being paid to civil servants, receiving low salary.
“It is going to be a continuous thing because, it is difficult to bring down people that are already receiving higher salary.
“What we will continue to do, is to increase the take home of those on the lower rank untill we have the very needed balance.
“We have started working on this, that was why the 40 per cent peculiar allowance was given, in an effort to close that gap, ” she said.
NAN recalled that there was an increase in salary, tagged ‘Consequential Allowance’, that led to a 40 per cent rise in the pay of certain low income earners in civil service during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s government. (NAN)