THE Sun.

Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has approved additional N200 million for payment of pensioners’ gratuity for the month of May.

He also approved the financial implementation of 2021 promotion exercise for workers and directed relevant government officials to negotiate with labour and come up with feasible recommendations as soon as possible.

Diri disclosed this, yesterday, at the Workers Day celebration in response to demands of labour leadership in the state. He said his administration prioritised workers welfare to enhance productivity.

He assured retirees that N400 million would be made available this month to accommodate a sizeable number of pensioners in view of the backlog of arrears. He expressed gratitude to workers for their support and ensuring  harmonious industrial relationship with his administration.

He also approved a number of the workers requests, which included implementation of the annual step increment and release of funds for the conduct of the 2022 promotion exercise for both the state and local government levels.

In a joint address by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), presented by the state NLC chairman, Mr John Ndiomu, labour commended the Diri administration’s workers-friendly posture.