The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the National Union of Food, Beverages and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) have picketed Dogans Sugar Limited in Amuwo Ododfin, Festac Lagos over alleged inhuman treatment of workers.
Dogan Sugar Limited, a subsidiary of Ata Ltd. Co. Ukraine, is a sugar manufacturing company with headquarters based in Ukraine.
The unions accused the companies of maltreating their Nigerian employees, contrary to the country’s labour law.
They were led by the state NLC Chairman, Comrade Funmilayo Sessy, who also accused the senior management of the companies of sexually harassing the female workers.
Other allegations were that most of the employees are casual workers who operate in a poor and unfriendly environment, the firm’s refusal for the employees to join a union to articulate their welfare and failure by the company to sign the initial agreement they had with the union last year.
The action began at 7 a.m., with the protesters carrying placards with various inscriptions as: “Enough of casualisation, sexual harassment, enough of modern slavery among others.
Addressing the journalists, Comrade Sessy said the protest was aimed at curbing anti-workers interest against Nigerian employees.
She said: “We are here to defend the interest of the workers and we are closing down the companies over anti-workers actions against them by their employers.”
General Secretary, NUFBTE, Comrade Mike Olanrewaju said the union have received several petitions from the workers over many anti-labour practices going on in the company.
Responding to the allegations, the Operation manager of the company, Mr Paul Ekele, said Dogans Sugar, denied the allegations.
“The point is that this company is not unionised and we have never gotten any grievance from our workers in any maltreatment. And the union can never come and impose anything on a company that is not unionised.
“We have not gotten anything from them prior to this. We are surprised because we cannot go in nor come out,” Ekele said.