The Nation Newspaper

Category: Labour

  • Union issues ultimatum

    The Medical and Health Workers’ Union (NHWU), has given the government a 30-day ultimatum to address its demands.

    The ultimatum began last weekend.

    Its National President, Comrade Joy Josiah, said the union agreed at a meeting at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, that their request  for improved pay and payment of some over due allowances should be met as it was done for their counterparts in the core medical unit.

    Speaking  with reporters, Josiah recalled that the battle to get the government to accede to the union’s  demand dated back to 2014.

    According to Josiah, the union has exercised enough patience and empathy for the public, who will be at the receiving end of the strike, which it said, would be total and indefinite at the expiration of the 30-day ultimatum, which started at the weekend.

    Josiah wondered why the government would accede to the demands of their colleagues of the core medicines within 15 days of strike warnings while those of the MHWU had lasted over five months without any attention from the same government.

    He lamented the widening of the pay gap between doctors and MHWU members, who give associated health services, describing it as unjustifiable.

    “The entry point for doctors used to be Level 9 while ours has been Level 8. Three years and you are expected to move to Level 9 while they moved to 10. So, it has always been one level or three years difference until the government made doctors starting point Level 12, which now translates to a gap of three levels and nine years.

    “Yet the medical doctors are already threatening that if government should raise our own relativity earnings, theirs too must be increased to widen the gap the more.”

     

    “This is grossly unfair to us and it is a product of unnecessary ego. But why should that be?,”he wondered.

  • Excise duty: Over 20,000 may lose jobs, says union

    • Employersto downsize

    Over 20,000 jobs may be lost because of the increase in the excise duty on alcoholic beverages and tobacco, the National Union of Food Beverage and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE), has said.

    According to its President, Lateef Oyelekan, employers in the industry have notified the union that they may have to downsize as the new tariff will affect their cost of production.

    The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, last Sunday, said the new excise duties were spread over a three-year period from 2018 to 2020  to moderate the impact on prices of affected products.

    But Oyelekan said with the new tariff, consumers would have to pay more for cigarettes and alcoholic beverages, which include beer and stout, wines and spirits.

    He noted that the union had written to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, on the implication of the new tariff, which may further exacerbate unemployment in the country.

    “This new policy of the government will increase the cost of production and if that happens the employers would have to look for a way of cutting cost, and workers are always the first option,”he said.

    Oyelekan said more than 20, 000 workers are employed in the alcoholic sector and half of this may lose their jobs,  same for the tobacco sector.

    He said the new tariff would not make local companies competitive and would further encourage importation.

    He said: “The British American Tobacco (BAT) has just decided to make Nigeria its African headquarters where all its products for other African countries would be produced, but this may make the company to relocate to other African country with much more favourable policy.

    “We can recall that Dunlop, Mitchellin relocated to Ghana due to unfavourable policy and now produce there and still bring the products to Nigeria because this is where the market is. That means Nigeria is providing employment for foreigners while our people walk on the streets daily looking for jobs. It is sad.”

    Oyelekan said what the union expected from the government was to look for a way to create jobs and existing ones given the high insecurity in the land.

    He also said the drive for foreign direct investment would be impacted negatively as no investor would like to invest in an economy with low returns on investment.

    “Our employers have already notified us that it would lead to shut down of some of their companies. What government should be doing is to come up with policy that will discourage employers from downsizing, but before they can do that tariff has to be reasonable,” Oyelekan said.

  • NULGE: no local govt autonomy, no re-election

    The Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) has advised its members nationwide to get their voters’ card ahead of the coming general elections, and use same to vote out any government opposed to its agitation for local government autonomy.

    The union said the only weapon  they could wield was the voting power ahead of the elections next year.

    The leadership of the union said it would not backslide on its campaign for local government autonomy in the face of intimidation and persecution by the powers that be.

    The Chairman of Lagos NULGE, Comrade Ajose Afolabi Senmako, charged his colleagues not to rest on their oars.

    “We in Lagos are watching them (leaders). Those with whom we entrusted our fate have disappointed us. The Speaker of  Lagos State House of Assembly and the governor are seeking re-election. You must go back to your wards and ask them questions. Tell them ‘no local government autonomy, no re-election’ If we fail to do this, providence would judge us,” he said.

    Senmako spoke at Shomolu Local Government, during a briefing organised by the union’s Southwest zone.

    NULGE National President, Comrade Ibrahim Khali, who addressed members, noted that the essence of the briefing was to reshape the agitations and introduce new strategies.

    He lamented that local governments nationwide had become a caricature on which the government experimented all forms of draconian policies.

    His words: “It is our responsibility as a trade union to engage government beyond welfare issues. Do not forget that we started this agitation for local government autonomy immediately we came on board.

    “As a local government, I can assure you that we have the wherewithal to deliver if granted autonomy, but some people somewhere have hijacked the system to their advantage.

    “We also realised that the only group that can champion the cause for this autonomy is NULGE so, it’s either we take up this struggle or fold our arms and allow the system to die.”

  • 65% of women unemployed, says ULC

    The United Labour Congress (ULC) has said the unemployment rate among women, which stands at 65 per cent, is unacceptable.

    Its President Comrade Joe Ajaero urged the Federal Government to ensure the rights of women and address hunger.

    Ajaero said: “Unemployment among women at around 65 per cent is unacceptable; sexual violence and abuse against the girl-child that suggest that 25 per cent of women experience this wickedness before the age of 18 is frightening.

    “Maternal mortality of about 145 deaths per day in Nigeria must be reduced. The killings in the northern part of Nigeria where majority of its victims are women and children should be addressed”.

    “We must take responsibility for the negative actions against our women. The continued silence in the face of this exclusion is conspiratorial and truly demonstrates our general attitude to critical issues that affect the development of Nigeria.”

    The labour leader said women could not continue to bear the brunt of the nation’s mismanagement, adding that if there was no thing the country could do, at least, it could take steps to protect women from the path of error, which men have chosen to tread.

    “How we treat our women tells the world who we are and how serious we hold the fabled quest for national development,” Ajaero noted.

    He said the participation of women in every facet of national life should not be treated trivially as was obtainable in the country; it should be pursued as a national priority.

    “If we understand that women make up a larger percentage of Nigeria’s population then, actions and behaviours or policies that subtly deny them unfettered participation in our national life are not only unpatriotic but must be held in contempt by all men of conscience,” he said.

    Ajaero urged women to seek the creation of platforms that would protect, project and serve as continuous advocacy instrument for pushing the frontiers of the struggle for women emancipation.

  • It’s criminal to owe workers, says Ngige

    The Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, has said it is a crime to owe workers, either in the private or public sector.

    Ngige, who noted that governors had no excuse for owing workers, said they ought to look inward to generate more fu nds rather than going cap-in-hand to Abuja for federal allocation.

    Speaking on the Federal Government’s disposition to the new minimum wage,  at a forum in Abuja, he said the tripartite committee would ensure that all parties involved arrived at a fair wage that would be binding on all stakeholders in the economy.

    Ngige said the maxim of this government was: if one cannot create more jobs, workers should hold on to the one they have.

    “That is the maxim! If we are not able to create as much jobs as we believe Nigerians will need during the electioneering campaign, we should be able to hold on to the one we have and then do the little we can to compensate for the shortfall. Since we came in, it has not been easy or rosy with the economy,” he said.

    The minister said first, there was the oil price slump and volatility in global market and then insurgency in oil producing areas.

    “Our revenue went down drastically and we couldn’t pay salaries. We had to borrow to pay salary. But we said our maxim is to keep the job, not eliminate jobs, even if we cannot create exactly as we promised.

    “In this regard, government led by example in our public service; we did not retrench people. We maintained the balance and if anything, some of our agencies were allowed to do what they called replacement,” he said.

     

  • Labour petitions Icpc, accuses NCC boss of fraud

    The Nigerian Copyrights Commission (NCC) branch of the Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has petitioned the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), accusing NCC Director- General (DG) Afam Ezekude of fraud, misappropriation and abuse of office.

    In a petition dated March 5, 2018, which was received at the commission on March 7,  the union accused Ezekude of allegedly using two fictitious firms to siphon about N115 million from the agency, and also illegally withdrawing about N16 million from the staff pension fund.

    The staff members,who shut down the headquarters of the agency at the federal secretariat, Abuja on Monday, also alleged in a statement  to The Nation that the DG embezzled about N390 million meant for various operations of the agency between 2012 and 2013, which were never carried out.

    At the time of filing this report, the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment were making efforts to prevent the picketing of the agency as the union threatened that other offices of the commission in Kaduna, Lagos and Makurdi would be shut.

    The union members refused to attend a meeting called by the ministry when they were informed that the DG would not attend as he was out of the FCT.

    They also accused him of illegally acquiring two letters from two different government officials renewing his four-year tenure when it expired, wondering how one person could get two appointment letters for the same position from two different offices.

    They told the commission that the DG “illegally conspired with some government officials in the Federal Ministry of Justice and office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, to secure for himself two separate letters of tenure renewal dated July 8, 2014 and April 24, 2015.”

    The two letters renewing his tenure for another four-year term, copies of which were made available to The Nation were signed on July 8, 2014, five months to the expiration of his tenure by the then Solicitor-General of the Federation, Abdullahi Yola and on April 24, 2015, four months after the expiration of the tenure by the Secretary to the then Government of the Federation, Anyim Pius Anyim and copied to the Chief of Staff to the President.

    When contacted on phone,  Ezekude dismissed the allegations, saying that he had already been given a clean bill of health by the ICPC, who has already issued him a letter clearing him.

    He said: “Investigations have been conducted on all those allegations by the ICPC and the ICPC has actually written to me clearing me of all the allegations. This was about two years ago or a year and half ago. I was cleared of all the allegations without exception. That is the position and I have a written clearance from the ICPC. If they have cleared me, I wonder what they will be investigating.

    “It is not as if they cleared me verbally. It was in writing. It makes you wonder why the pull him Down syndrome. You may want to find out from the ICPC if whether what I am saying is the truth because they will have it on their record. Those allegations were found to be unfounded, unsubstantiated and false and so, they cleared me of all of them.”

  • NAGAFF election: Okoro promises ‘lofty height’ for union

    Ahead of the election of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Tin Can chapter, scheduled for April 10, Chairman Kenneth Obi Okoro, the chief executive officer of Globe Gate West Africa Limited, a firm of freight forwarders, has promised to give the union a dynamic leadership.

    The Imo State-born Political Scientist and member of the Institute of Administrators, who is contesting for the chairmanship, said under his stewardship, unfriendly business environment and under-utilisation of the ports would be addressed.

    He also said under his watch, NAGAFF would collaborate with relevant agencies to ensure that the  ports operated according to the standard set by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO).

    On his chances of winning the election, Okoro, who described himself as a big player in the maritime industry, especially in the freight forwarding business, enthused that majority of the operators, who ultimately would be the voters in the April election, were the ones that saw his qualities and persuaded him to contest.

    “Most operators in this chapter, who of course, are the voters, persuaded me to stand for the election, and having assessed their convictions, I decided to come out. Over the years they have known me as a quintessential leader who feels the pain of an average forwarder in his day to day operations,” he said.

  • ‘Labour must do more for workers’

    Organised Labour needs to do more to give fair representation to workers across all sectors, the International Trade Confederation (ITUC) has said.

    The ITUC, Africa Region, during a visit to the Medical and Health Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) in Abuja, said the NLC had the capacity to double the number of organised workers.

    Its Co-ordinator, Human and Trade Union Rights, Joel Odigie, urged MHWUN to support the Ayuba Wabba-led  executive to increase the size of organised workers in Nigeria.

    He said: “Part of the assistance that should be given to Ayuba is for the union to be relentless organising. Organising at the NLC should be given more emphasis, now the number is six million, but I believe that we can have 18 million. This can be done within a year.”

    He maintained that more workers were, indeed, waiting to be organised, advising the labour movement to move beyond the union to the private and the informal sectors.

    Also, the Somali Trade Federation has commended the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for its role in the formation and existence of the labour centre in the war-torn country.

    On the support, the Federation of  Somali Trade Unions (FESTU) has got from Nigeria, its General Secretary,  Omar Faruk Osman, said his visit to Nigeria was to express appreciation to the NLC and the union which produced the NLC president.

    “Nigeria has been speaking for Somalia in the United Nation. Kenya was expected to give us support when the federation was formed, but we didn’t get it, but NLC came to our aid,” he said.

    MHWUN National President  Biobelemoye Joy Josiah, however, assured ITUC that the workers and the union had always given the NLC President the  necessary support to ensure that he succeeds in his mandate at home and internationally.

    “Ayuba is part and parcel of this union, this is his base. The union has not been as successful as we are now, Ayuba Wabba is the one that made our unions what it is today. His feet fits the shoe wherever he goes to represent labour,”he said.

    He noted that the union over the years respected and honoured its past leaders whom the present leadership sees as elders as they are still very relevant in giving guidance to the union.

    The MHWUN president said the union was happy with Wabba’s global record, adding that the union would continue to support the NLC President in his efforts on Somalia and others in the continent.

     

     

  • PENGASSAN seeks NNPC’s reimbursement for oil subsidy payment

    PENGASSAN seeks NNPC’s reimbursement for oil subsidy payment

    The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has called on the Federal Government to reimburse the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for the expenses it incurred on payment of subsidy to marketers.

    Arising from its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in Warri, Delta State,  PENGASSAN said  the NNPC had continued to shoulder the responsibility of providing products to close gaps  created by the withdrawal of other marketers owing to the non-payment of subsidy claims from 2015 to 2017.

    In a communique by PENGASSAN President Comrade Francis Olabode Johnson and General Secretary Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, the union said the extra burden absorbed by the NNPC was depleting its finances and hampering the effective discharge of its statutory obligations.

    The senior staff trade union, therefore, called on the government to reimburse the huge payments made within the period under review.

    It expressed worries over the delayed payment of subsidy and debts  owed oil marketers, urging the Federal Government to come to the table to resolve the differences as this would help to avert loss of jobs in the oil and gas industry.

    On the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), PENGASSAN praised the 8th National Assembly for breaking the jinx of passing into law the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB), but called on the lawmakers to expedite action on the Petroleum Industry Administration Bill, the Petroleum Industry Fiscal Bill and the Petroleum Host Community Bill to enable the PIB deliver full benefits of the intended Oil and Gas reforms.

    The Association demanded that the legal framework in the bill should allocate a percentage of the production by International Oil Companies (IOC)’s operating in Nigeria for refining in the country through a policy that would compel them to build Refineries in Nigeria.

    “This is in support of the proposal of the Federal Government as announced by the Honourable Minister of Petroleum (State), Dr Ibe Kachickwu at the last Nigerian International Petroleum Summit (NIPS) in Abuja,” it stated.

  • Reps allege recruitment racketeering at NSITF

    Reps allege recruitment racketeering at NSITF

    The House of Representatives has expressed concern over what it described as recruitment racketeering at the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF).  It ordered the Committee on Labour, Employment and Productivity to investigate why the NSITF board  has not been inaugurated five months after its composition.

    The fund’s management, the House said, is being inundated by requests for employment of senior managers by top officials of the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

    The lawmakers also argued that the non-inauguration of the Board, which has former National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) General Secretary Frank Kokori as its chairman, has thrown the Fund into confusion, which is threatening the delivery of its mandate.

    According to the law establishing the fund, NSITF Board members are drawn from Labour, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, who represents the ministry; the three executive directors of the Fund and its managing director/Chief Executive  Officer.

    However, The Nation gathered that the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI) had written to the Minister of Labour and Employment to inaugurate NSITF board without further delay.

    Its National President, Oyinkansola Olasanoye, said the Board’s inauguration  would enable the Fund deliver on its mandate. She  expressed the union’s readiness  to work with relevant stakeholders and high government officials to appeal to the Minister to inaugurate the board.

    According to her, the union had sent a letter to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha, on the need to halt the recruitment of additional 350 senior managers into the Fund by the Minister at a time the Fund is facing financial difficulty and in no urgent need for fresh staffers.

    Asking the Federal Government to expand the Fund’s mandate  to include payment of compensation to unemployed persons, Olasanoye said the implementation of the N5,000 social benefit promised by the All Progressives Congress (APC) ought to have been implemented by the NSITF, which has the manpower and structures to implement such mandate.

    She said: “We thought that the APC government would have allowed the NSITF to implement the N5, 000 social benefit to unemployed persons because the Fund already has the staffers that are trained in the implementation of social security in advanced countries that have been implementing it for decades.

    “In addition to this, they also have the structure in all the 36 states of the federation. Again, the Federal Government would not have to spend money to recruit fresh staff to administer the benefit. The reason the programme has not achieved the desired result is that the most appropriate body was not allowed to implement it.”