Category: Labour

•’Situation getting out of hands’

THE Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has moved against the Federal Government over the continued scarcity of fuel and naira notes, stating that workers are worst hit.

They are worried that the situation is getting out of hand.

Its President, Tommy Okon, who expressed Nigerians’ concerns and pains, said the government’s economic advisers had failed.

Speaking to reporters in Lagos, Okon, however, said a protest at this period would only provide an excuse for the government to postpone the elections.

He said if the situation was not addressed quickly, many civil servants might not be able to go to work because they could not afford the fare to work.

The ASCSN chief condemned the government and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for not understanding the policy which has made life difficult for workers.

He expressed optimism that  things could be better when the right leadership took over.

 He added that Nigerians should  ensure that they got their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) to elect credible leaders that would move the country forward.

“Nigeria is like a vehicle without an engine, and it is not yet uhuru for the incoming administration, because the next president is going to face the issues he never bargained for.

“We, in the labour movement, don’t want to take chances because if we lead a protest, the government will cash in on that and say the economy is not conducive for the conduct of elections. We are very conscious of it. We are applying a scientific approach to industrial relations.

“Our PVC is our weapon and for any government that is anti-worker would be voted out, irrespective of religion, political affiliation, but conscious of someone who has the capacity, competency, capability and contents to deliver.

“Any government that is coming that will not show enormous concern for the workers should be ready to face the wrath of the workers. We are only keeping silent because we want this government to leave in peace so that nobody will accuse the labour union of sabotaging the government to achieve their plans to stop the conduct of elections,” he said.

The Nigeria Union of Railway Workers has criticised the Federal Government’s plan to privatise the railway, saying it may  affect their jobs.

Its National President, Comrade Innocent Ajiji, stated this at a briefing in Lagos.

Ajiji, reacting to comments on the possible unbundling of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) by the Federal Government, claimed that no privatised firm in Nigeria is working very well.

Ajiji said: “Now you talk about railways that provide huge manpower and training for workers to be managed by an individual? That is not possible. It is the Federal Government that owns the nation’s security, the railway and everything, yet it cannot protect the rail line, workers and even our passengers.

“So, how can an individual protect all these? We have advised them not to try that, and if they do, there are terms and conditions recognised by law that must be met, of which we must come back to the drawing table and discuss it. But if they go behind us to unbundle the sector, we will resist it with our last blood.”

 He stressed that the union could not work with private organisations.

  “Taking NEPA as a case study. It had about 66,000 workers when it was unbundled. But, today, you will find out that many people lost their jobs. That is what will happen also to the railway, if unbundled.

 “Leaving us to individuals is like holding nothing in your hands, because  they could wake up  anyday and sack you. Our job security would be threatened. The investor would only be concerned about how to make profits.”

On workers’welfare, Ajiji said efforts on salaries and allowances’ review were made, but implementation remained the issue.

“In 2021, we went on three days of industrial action that lasted for two days after which the then Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, intervened and we suspended the strike. He went into action and secured an approval of 95 per cent salary increase for railway workers, but the approval is yet to be implemented.

“When you take the pay slip of a Grade Level Five worker in a railway that collects about N33, 000, by the time you deduct taxes, the salary drops to N26,000. That is what such railway workers have been collecting.”

The Secretary-General, Comrade Segun Esan , added: ” We have been to the National Assembly, Salaries and Wages Commission, as well as Budget and National Planning Ministry. “They were asking for one document or the other, which we have provided, yet no salary increase has been effected. While we are hoping that something will be done soon, if nothing is done, however, we may have to go back to the strike we suspended in 2021.

 “There are lots of allowances stated in our terms of service, but the railway management is not paying, because those allowances are supposed to be paid based on the revenue generated. We are not making money. What we are generating is not even enough to fuel the locomotives because of the high cost of diesel.”

Stakeholders in the labour industry have advocated industrial peace as key to national development.

They, therefore, urged Nigerians to work towards ensuring sustained industrial peace in the public and private sectors.

They spoke at the National Labour Adjudication forum, with the theme, “Labour Adjudication in Nigeria: The Present and the Future”, in Lagos

President, Nigeria Consultative Employer’ Association (NECA),  Mr Taiwo Adeniyi, said: “The implications of such industrial actions are well known and need not be reiterated here. However, as stakeholders in the workplace and indeed in national development, we must constantly find a middle ground of compromise, whereby with a win-win perspective.

“We advance our different objectives. We have a common responsibility to align our divergent views, consolidate our interests and put to use the machinery of conflict resolution as enshrined in various statutes to attain national economic development.”

He explained that the quest for industrial harmony is the responsibility of stakeholders, while the association continues collaboration with organised labour.

“The need to deepen the partnership and collaboration is imperative more than ever before, as the nation faces critical issues in the coming months,” he added.

The President, National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN), Justice Benedict Kanyip, said the benchmark in labour adjudication should be the global standard set by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), otherwise there would be more than enough labour litigation for the NICN to process in the future.

He said: “Because most workplace rights are covered by international instruments ratified by Nigeria, I envisage in the future that predominantly most of the litigation would revolve around the rights of employees to get the work and to do the work.

“I also envisage that NICN will be saddled with litigation as to the needs of sustainable enterprise because of the strength and power of employers and the way the employer group is pushing the concept of enterprise, competitiveness and sustainability.”

The outgoing President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Waba, who spoke on frictions between employers and employees, called for respect for mutual agreements, and conformity with the standard of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

Wabba said workers embark on strike when their fundamental rights are trampled upon or agreements not fulfilled.

According to him, the right to strike is legal gbobally even in advanced economy when the fundamental conditions of workers are infringed upon.

Director-General, NECA,  Mr Adewale Smart Oyerinde said the forum had become imperative to create a platform for stakeholders to align perspectives and deepen collaboration for industrial peace and national development.

He said NECA believes that the stance taken by the NICN has deepened the need for regular interaction between parties in the industrial relations.

The panel of discussants at the Forum agreed that there was the need for justice to be administered in labour suits according to international standard. They believed that Nigeria should set as its benchmark the standard of the ILO in resolving labour disputes.

•Says court ruling does not guarantee availability

Despite the Supreme Court interim injunction restraining the Federal Government from suspending the acceptance of the old naira notes on February 10 deadline, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has given Federal Government seven days ultimatum to make currency available to Nigerians, failure which it would call out its members for a nationwide industrial action. So also is congress stand on the fuel scarcity.

Speaking at its 13th Delegates Conference in Abuja , the newly elected NLC President, Comrade Joseph Ajaero said the congress is already mobilising it’s members across the country for a mass action.

Ajaero insisted that the court ruling on the suspension of the naira swap does not guarantee that it will be available.

Ajaero said: “The usurpation and use of state power to impoverish the citizenry abuses the ideals of democracy and destroys the nation. Governance ought to provide comfort for the citizenry so, it pains us to witness the increasing frustrations Nigerians have had to go through in the last few months just to fuel their cars and generators, the new phenomenon of black market Naira-buying our own monies at a discount from illegal brokers.

“Governance in Nigeria seems to have broken all known records for bad governance. We will definitely not keep quiet in the face of this deliberate defilement of citizenship by the ruling elite as we may mobilise variously across the nation to nudge the government to act more responsibly towards the citizenry and seek ways of alleviating the suffering that currently walks our streets with arrogance”.

On the forthcoming election,Ajaero said  it is crucial that the politicians learn from history to avoid its pitfalls.

He said they must play according to the rules avoiding actions that may truncate our democratic process and imperil our nation.

“The electoral umpire must ensure a transparent and equitable conduct of the elections at all levels while we urge all Nigerians to seize the opportunity which this presents to vote the right people into positions of power. Those that are destroying our nation and stealing our collective patrimony must not be allowed any longer in our corridors of power.

“As Nigerians, we must not allow them divide us along religious and regional lines. Our demands on the Nigerian State are basically the same.

We have unwaveringly asked for a secure nation where we can move freely and carry out our daily activities without violently losing our lives and properties. We have demanded equity and fairness in the sharing of our nation’s resources, more functional and accessible education system for our children, Increasing access to high quality medical care, high quality road infrastructure, increasing access to nutrition and generally elevating the factors that increase human wellbeing. We should therefore, vote the candidates who have the competence and character to deliver on these demands come February and March,” he said.

The Supreme Court issued an interim injunction restraining the Federal Government from suspending the acceptance of the old Naira notes.

•Union denies mounting toll points at port

The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has passed a vote of confidence in its President-General, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju, as he contests for Deputy President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) at the forthcoming 13th delegates’ conference.

The dockworkers spoke at a rally in Lagos to support the Branch President’s re-election.

Coordinator of the Concerned Maritime Workers, Comrade Jide Alfred, said the leadership style of Adeyanju was quite commendable, urging him to do more.

Alfred said: “There  are  loads of transformation in the last few years under your watch as President -General of the Maritime Union.

 “We are in a joyful mood and we are satisfied with your performance in the last few years and that is why we came to pass vote of confidence.

“We are here to support you and to encourage you to go for the higher post.’’

 In a related event, MWUN has denied the allegation of its mounting illegal toll points at the ports, stating that this was designed to malign their good image.

The union, in a statement signed by the Secretary-General, Felix Akingboye, said the accusation by the Council of Maritime Trade Unions and Associations (COMTUA), alleging that the union mounted 20 illegal toll points was not true.

The union, referring to a publication (not The Nation), said MWUN would not join issues with COMTUA, but that it had to correct the wrong impression created by COMTUA to tarnish its reputaion.

The union claimed a former member of the association was behind the accusation.

“MWUN is a partner in growing our economy and ensuring peace in all our ports, terminals, jetties and  oil and gas platforms, which inform our unblemished decade-long record of maintaining industrial peace in the maritime sector,” the MWUN scribe said.

He stated that the accusation was the union of mounting “tolls of 20 checkpoints from Coconut Bus stop to Tin Can Island Gate — a distance of about 1,000m, was a figment of myopic imagination”.

 He stated: “Comrade Adeyanju Adewale, president-general, MWUN, has over the years built a reputation based on probity in public service. He has contributed in no small measure to the growth, sustenance and development of the maritime sector.”

The SG reasoned that this could be attested to by the myriads of accolades conferred on him by the government and other relevant stakeholders in the maritime industry and too drag his name into this is wicked and unfortunate.

  “For the sake of clarity, MWUN confines its activities to areas  within its jurisdictional scope, one of which is haulage, superintended by one of our highly trained and respected union officials, Comrade Taofeek Shorinola.

  “Our well-trained members will, and have not in any circumstance gone against the law, as they ply their trade within the exclusive economic zone of the ports and cannot be found on the roads outside the port vicinity.”

Comrade Goke Olatunji is the President, National Union of Chemical, Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees (NUCFLRANMPE) and Chairman, Industrial Global Union. In this interview with TOBA AGBOOLA, he says one of the best ways to avoid industrial conflict is through collective bargaining.

Industrial conflict

Resolving conflict is a sine qua non to organisational survival and, as such, should be  accorded priority. The strategy, principle, process and practice must be examined to ensure healthy conflict resolution without bias or prejudices. Externalising industrial conflict has consequences for employers and employees. Parties should endeavour to settle internally. Issues that could lead to industrial conflict include retrenchment of workers due to factory closure, lay-offs, discharge or dismissal; denial of benefits or  award to workers, non-payment of allowances to seasonal employees, and the demand of employees for medical relief; lock out and damages and gratuity, NHF, pension fund and allowances claims.

Employees should strive to avoid industrial conflict through, among others. Collective bargaining machinery must be properly utilised; Proper training and development; leadership by example.

    Workers’ rights

In terms of fighting for the rights of our workers when they have been infringed upon by the employers, we do this often. The media were around when we shut Nycil for two weeks. How could management lock our members out without prior information. At the end of the day, we settled and now the parties have a very cordial relationship. Be that as it may, we educate our members, organise workshops for our members at the branches, zones. To us, learning is continuous. We have an education and research department that is saddled with that responsibility.

A good union’s responsibility is to defend members’welfare. When we talk of defending the rights of our members and taking care of their welfare, we have the NJIC. The last one was signed in April, last year and we do that every two years. Our basic salary, that’s our industry’s minimum wage, is N73,000 and that does not mean branches that are doing well cannot pay more. We encourage them to pay more than the minimum wage. Some branches do negotiate in-house, but that is not official. It is just within the branch and we are not against it. The minimum wage that Unilever pay is not the same as PZ or Vitafoam. This serves as an encouragement for the workers.

 Equally, we encourage our women to take up leadership and we do this through training and workshops. In the history of this union, we have not had the number of women we have now in leadership. In the Central Working Committee, we have two women, the national auditor and the ex-officio. At the National Executive Council, we also have two, the chairpersons of West Area council and the Northeast Area Council. These are the little things we have done to encourage our members. It’s true the economy is not good, it affects us too. But we believe that in as much as we are still existing, we must try our best.

Workers’ welfare

There is no doubt that the situation in the country is not palatable in the sectors. But in our sector, we have done our best. Many unions are complaining, but we stand to be counted among the best. There are some that are celebrating casuals. There are differences between casuals, contract staff, outsourcing and regular staff, but we are one of the leading sectors in the country. Outsourcing, and contract staff have to do with a third party organisation. That means, the management has outsourced the jobs to a third party organisation. Hence we ensure that the management must give us access to the contractors to enable us organise the workers because as far as we are concerned, workers irrespective of whatever name you call them, are workers and we should be able to speak for them and fight for their rights when such are trampled upon by employers.

Challenges

One of our challenges is the drop in our membership. This is because lots of companies in our sector are moving  to a neighbouring country. Some reduce their staff and these affected our membership and the strength. And, of course, this reduced check off dues. Everybody is being affected and the situation is not palatable at all.

 Govt’s policies versus implementation

    It is not that the governments are not coming up with good policies, but the major problem is the implementation. All hands must be on deck to make things work. Then policy inconsistency is another problem. The government should come out with policy that will encourage foreign investors. This is very important for us to move forward as a nation. And the government must me up and doing on our security. No where is secure in Nigeria and no foreign company will want to invest in a place that is not secure. The government, most especially the incoming government, must address this.

Also, the government should chose the right people for every position. The government must go for the technocrat. I am also emphasising it, the next government must put the square peg in the square hole. Any government official that is not ready to work should be removed.

    Fuel Subsidy

    Now that they have not removed fuel subsidy, we are buying a litre of petrol for about N300. If it is removed, that means we will be buying between litre for between N750 and N1,000.

How do you want the common Nigerian to survive. Look at the price of gas. It jumped from N200 to N800. Where do we go from here. Don’t forget that we produce fuel. We will not support fuel subsidy removal; that is, if there is anything like subsidy.There is no future in the way this country is going because you can see our youths going abroad. Those in the country are committing crime to be rich.

    Adequate organisation

Our plan is to intensify our efforts in  organisation. Our sector experienced a lot of closure and redundancy, but we also have some new companies coming up. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a lot of our companies were shut  and we were paying salaries to their workers. This had effect on their profit margins. No production, no sales. We, as a union, cannot demand anything for our members during this period. There are some benefits, that workers enjoye when they go to work, like free lunch, overtime, company products. But these have been stopped. But, we thank God that we have surmounted that. The pandemic really dealt with us. Today, we cannot count more than 300 companies in our industry nationwide. Yet, before we had over 600. Some of them could not come back. Companies like Michelin, and Dunlop relocated to neighbouring countries like Ghana, and Sierra leone.

However, we have been able to organise more companies and that’s why we are still standing and, I will say, overcoming our challenges gradually.

Training

In 1991, under the leadership of Comrade Damulak, we picked some of our area council leaders to go to University of Ibadan for some programmes. The leadership believed that it could be arranged annually and initially contracted it out. Later, we took it up and continued to organise it. We have seen the benefits of continuous education of our members because it makes them to stand in a better position when dealing with the employers. It also lessen the burden on the leadership as they know what to do in their respective branches. So, we have less crisis in our hands. Through the training we have been able to develop more of our members, who have gone ahead to hold managerial positions in their places of work. For example, one of our facilitators in our training last year was our former branch Secretary, but now he is the Group Human Resource Manager of the company.  He has developed himself and we have so many of them like that.

Projects

We recently unveiled a multi-million naira hotel project. I sat down with my executives and we decided there is a need for us to do more on diversification. That we should not depend only on check off dues and that we should look for another way to generate income for the union. That was how the idea of the new hotel comes up. So, I appealed to the Central Working Committee to give me an approval that every month, we should spend N2 million and what ever we gathered through the check off dues, should go into the project. So, that was how we started and, to God be the Glory, we completed the project late last year. It was unveiled by the NLC President. Now, we have recruited some staff and the operation is less than one month.

So, whatever comes in, will be part of our income. Actually, our guest house was conceived to take care of our members coming from the outstations. Anytime they visited the Secretariat on official duties,  we lodged them at hotels, but with our guest house of 17 rooms in place, we will be able to cut down on such expenses.

The same goes for our shopping mall.The last regime of Comrade Isok did the first floor, but when I came, I did the second and the last floors and the roofing, which we did with iron steel. What remains  is the finishing. Our members are really working hard to ensure completion of the project.

We conceptualised the shopping malls, with the event centre as means of generating income for the union. Already, people have started making enquiry about it, but we told them to allow us to complete it.

The President, Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), Comrade Tommy Etim Okon, in this interview with TOBA AGBOOLA, calls on workers to use the opportunity being offered by next month’s general election to vote out political parties and governors who have failed to prioritise their welfare.

How did workers fare in the last one year?

Well, let me say that it was a turbulent year for workers, a very hard year indeed. When you look at the socio-economic challenges viz-a-vis the static income in terms of the minimum wage, and the economic mix, the environment that we operate in, it has been a very challenging situation for workers.

 You can see in recent times the high cost of food items, transportation, even rent. And these are the mix, which the worker can play around.You must be able to accommodate your family, provide food for your family,  pay for transportation to and from your office. So, these are the issues which have been of enormous challenge to workers.

Again, you also look at the health situation, and the epidemics from one virus. So, when you aggregate them and you compare what workers take home, it becomes a cause of worry. So, workers never fared well in 2022.

Reeportedly, some states are yet to comply with the minimum wage. How is the union handling this?

 This is very unacceptable and this is the reason we are telling workers to get their PVC because we are going to vote them out. We hereby reiterate our directive to workers to vote out any politician or political party that refuses to pay the national minimum wage.

We shall continue to consolidate our efforts to strengthen existing platforms and structures to give teeth to our resolve to vote out anti-labour politicians.

Recently, there is news about the review of minimum wage. The government is saying that it will review it. What is the update on this?

As far as we are concerned, it’s a deceit and an insult to the workers if government is saying that it is setting up machinery to review the minimum wage at the 11th hour. Who is fooling who? For saying that at this time means they are not serious and it’s like the government wants to pass the burden to the in-coming administration.Take, for instance, the minister will say something today, tomorrow, he will say another. This does not make sense and it’s not fair on the workers. If they want to do it, they would have done it long ago; not now. The government is not sincere.

Also on the call for the upward review of  civil servants’ salary, some labour leaders have tagged the statements of the Minister of Labour and Employment as inconvenient. What is your take?

 We have also learnt to silently discuss the issue because when it comes to the public sector, they make announcements and the whole thing keeps dominating the public space. Before you even see the money, inflation has eaten it. Maybe this time the government wants to be silent and do the needful without much noise as done in the private sector. Even though sometimes the government uses propaganda machinery to boost whatever they are doing. So, I want to believe that the process is ongoing and at the appropriate time, the announcement will be made.

What are your expectations from the incoming administration?

The issue of corruption should be one of the major thing the incoming government should address. Corruption has eaten deep into our system and it must be addressed immediately. The incoming government should also address insecurity. No place is safe in Nigeria. For instance, travelling by road is no more safe and it’s not everyone that can afford flight. The government needs to address these groups causing havoc in the country. Another major issue is the unemployment and underemployment. The government needs to enhance and pay more attention to the infomal sector sector because it drives the economy. There is need for us to move from a consumption to production nation.

Also, we have seen the budget. There is nothing much to be expected because you cannot set that agenda for the next government. Every government will set the agenda based on their manifesto. So, it is expected that the new government will set an agenda and it is also expected that workers will be on alert and also alive to their responsibility by ensuring that they get their PVC and vote for the government they want. Because if workers stay aloof, they don’t need to complain. But if you make use of the powers you have to vote for a government that you believe will care for the workers’ interests. I think that is where you can make your presentation and I stand by it.

In 2023, we see hope but the hope is based on how much workers are able to turn out with their voters’ cards because if you want to vote out a bad government, it is not by shouting, it is not by protests. We have an opportunity to vote out a bad government, especially a government that does not wish well for workers, and the only weapon we have is our PVC. I believe very strongly that the horrible living conditions workers face will form the basis for them to come out en masse to exercise their voting rights for a government that will treat them better.

What kind of candidate are your members looking to support and do you have a preferred candidate?

We want a candidate that has the capacity, capability, honesty and based on his past records, friendly to workers. And if we have that, I think we are okay because the problem of this country is leadership. When we get a leadership that can turn the opportunities we have in this country for the betterment of the citizenry, I think we are good. At the appropriate time, we will give workers direction. I am sure that each of the candidates knows that the interests of workers are paramount. And, as a government, if you want to survive, you need workers that have the energy, workers that will operate in a good environment that are also competitive in terms of socio- economic needs. So, at the appropriate time, the association will direct its members

The Decent Work Agenda is an issue that is making waves. What does decent work really mean for a worker, especially in the civil service?

 I am very familiar with the Decent Work Agenda. But, to be practical, it means the provision of a conducive working environment, wage protection, and the wage being such that it can enable you to care for your family. These are indicators of a decent work: you have a living wage, conducive working environment and availability of working tools.

So, skills, environment, and the economy play a major role in the actualisation of a decent work agenda. Skills should be built to match what is required by the employers, workers must operate in an environment that enables opportunity for productivity and growth, and an economy that enables a worker to meet his or her socio-economic needs. That, to me, is the basis on which a decent work agenda rests.

What is your union doing for its members in terms of skills?

Unionism is about educating the workers. We have workers’education in the form of conferences and seminars, bringing in developmental issues and industrial relations. We are at the top of this. And, again, we are ensuring that our workers are well-skilled to match the 21st Century workforce. These are things we do, and that is why, even in the association, we make sure we create the enabling environment for our units, branches and chapters. We organise seminars, training and conferences.

 Can you share with us some of your achievements?

So far, we have ensured that there is industrial peace and harmony. We have been able to manage and curb what would have been a crisis in our sector. We have ensured training and skills for our members to boost productivity in their working place. We have also ensured  continuation of the Abuja Secretariat project of the union, overseas training for members, some of whom had just returned from Dubai, and working for the restoration of gratuity payment to public service employees.

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has said unless the country revives its four refineries and engage in local production of petroleum products, the problem of fuel subsidy will persist.

Its General Secretary, Lumumba Okugbawa, told The Nation that the best way to address the problem is not rocket science.

He said this is important because we are not in control of the international price nor have enough foreign currencies to buy product.

 Okugbawa said any subsidy that is import-driven would be a disaster, stating that citizens would be in a worst situation than they are in.

“If you remove subsidy and import, the price will skyrocket. Why can’t we look inwards and refine our products. While we import, we are not in control of the international market price. Look at the global energy crisis. Because we are not in control, it is difficult, but for those producing their fuel, the situation is different.

 “Our exchange rate is not stable. These are the two determinants of import-driven products. Until we produce locally, every other thing we talk about is political.

 “The government has assured us that by March, the Port Harcourt Refinery will be completed. Dangote Refinery is also almost completed. So, if all these come on stream, naturally, the price will go down. Let us face the fact. Local refining is the way out. It has been our position over the years,” he said.

 On the expectation from the outgoing and incoming administration, he said accountability was the key.

Okugbawa added: “Every leader starting from the grassroot should be held for accountability and transparency. They must be held responsible for every action taken.

“Also, any politician that wins must be ready to give back to the society as promised. They should be rigorous in their campaign. This is very important to know the best among them. The era of sitting down in one place and be campaigning is over.

“So, when they remember that this is the process that brought them in, they will respect it and do the needful.”