The Nation Newspaper

Category: Labour

  • NUFBTE partners MINILS to boost workers’ industrial relations knowledge

    National Union of Food Beverage and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE) and the Michael Imoudu Labour Institute  have collaborated to boost employees’knowledge on industrial and labour relations.

    Speaking at the event, which held at the NUFBTE National Secretariat, Michael Imoudu Labour Institute MINILS Director-General, Alhaji Saliu Ishaq, said the institute has broaden its activities to meet with their challenges.

    “We have introduced a diploma programme on the Industrial and Labour Relations to enable us serve the workers well,” he said.

    He added that both organisations were collaborating for mutual benefit, saying: “We are aware that the union has been a formidable one and we have been interacting and meeting over the years for mutual relationship.”

    He pointed out that the institution has worked with several food companies’ workers, such as Seven Up, Nestle Nigeria, and Unilever.

    According to him, “we are here to introduce to the union our bouquet of services; it is an institute that is forward looking with the new management coming on board in April, this year.

    “Since we came on board, we have been strategising on how we can move the institute forward along with our stakeholders.”

    He pointed out that the institute is impressed in the development going on in the union venturing into various businesses, with an aim of making the union viable and financially buoyant, saying unions has to be self sustaining.

    “Our services for 2018 – we are looking forward to receiving members from your member companies to take maximum advantage of our services,” he added.

    Also, NUFBTE National President, Lateef Oyelekan, said the institution has improved a lot of workers.

    He said that the first time, he visited Labour Solidarity Centre in America was through the institution.

    He pointed out that the union had diversified into other areas to generate revenue for the Union, saying, “we came up with event centre and from there we moved to commercial hotel and after the commission of the hotel we started our water factory.”

    He said, “we have learnt a lot from the institution, but the institution needs to be widely spread across the country.”

  • Lawmaker: why council executives should be trained

    A member of the House of Representatives, representing Ikorodu Constituency, Hon Babajimi Benson, has said regular training of local government’s executives will boost their service delivery.

    Benson said the training, aside ensuring good governance, leaders of the various local governments, would be able to effect positive changes in the lives of their constituents as they are the closest to the grassroots.

    He stated this at the retreat for the six local government’s executives in Ikorodu Federal Constituency by ICare Foundation in Lagos.

    It had as theme: “Impacting the electorates, achieving good governance and legislative excellence”.

    “The need to improve the quality of lives of the people is why we are here. It is a new year, a time where leaders set goals and we, representing the Ikorodu division, second largest constituency in Lagos, so we brought people who can function, maximise and add value to the people who elected them. It is a time that we have to ensure that the electorates are happy and it is a penultimate year to election, so we need to set goals and try as possible to achieve the goals,” he said.

    On what to expect from the maiden training attended by the six local government chairmen, vice chairmen, councillors, supervisors and influential people in the Ikorodu constituency, Benson said: “My expectation is that the training got will be optimised, add value to governance and the leaders will have better things to discuss and achieve for the electorates.  We want to deliver the whole of ikorodu to the performing governor who has inspired us to work harder, and the training will be regular, continuous and constitent as promised by the life coach, the catalyst, Mr Lanre Olusola, who is here with his organisation.”

    A former secretary to the Lagos state government, Asiwaju Olorunfunmi Bashorun, said the  training was welcome as over five million residents of Ikorodu would indirectly benefit from it.

    He commended Hon. Benson on the initiative, affirming that more of such would grow Ikorodu and Lagos in general.

    The trainer/Head of the  Olusola Lanre Coaching Academy (OLCA), Mr Olusola Lanre,  said leaders fail because they set too many unrealistic goals. He said he was part of the initiative was real change would begin in the country in the year.

    On political leadership issues, he said: “The proper thing is to first accept that we are Nigerians which is not a geographical space, not natural resources under the ground or the air we breathe but is us and if we want to move the nation forward, we need to make our commitment to the leadership that drive this nation forward and people in leadership need to be equipped with the right mindset to be able to create an enabling vision and build on it.

    ”To be able to do that, they need to take control of their lives, set goals and achieve them. They need to build themselves first, so the programme is about self leadership, helping the leaders develop their own personal goals and visions in their own constituents and get what they want to see in the next three years, five years, two years, one year and how do they see themselves achieve those things and how they see themselves.”

     

  • Fed Govt to stem job losses, says Ngige

    Fed Govt to stem job losses, says Ngige

    Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige has assured Nigerians of a brighter year, adding that the Federal Government has moved to stem job losses and create new ones.

    The Minister, in a New Year message, urged Nigerians not to tremble over the statistics on job losses released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

    He said the development was  modulated by a similar release by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which indicated more than seven million job growth in the agricultural sector.

    Ngige said: “I wish to assure Nigerians that 2018 will not be as bleak as 2017 in terms of job losses as the Federal Government has put enough checks to forestall a repeat of what was encountered in 2017.

    “As a matter of fact, the figure released by the NBC must be placed

    alongside statistics by the CBN, which showed that over seven million jobs have been created in the agricultural sector. This is the only way to arrive at a balanced job situation in the country.”

    He further noted that the Federal Government will work harder in the New Year to create more jobs and sustain the current efforts at protecting the existing ones.

    The minister said: “We shall continue to maintain our principled stand against retrenchment and encourage the state governments to do same.”

  • Social protection affordable in low-income countries, says ILO

    Social protection affordable in low-income countries, says ILO

    The International Labour Organisation (ILO) in its  World Social Protection Report 2017-2019 has said  the poorest countries can afford to extend social protection to all citizens.

    According to the ILO report, the universal coverage in old-age pensions has been achieved by more than 20 countries, including Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, Cabo Verde, China, Lesotho, Mauritius, Mongolia, Namibia, South Africa, Timor Leste, Trinidad and Tobago and Zanzibar (Tanzania).

    It stated that countries normally achieve universal coverage by a combination of contributory social insurance and tax-based social assistance or social protection floors.

    “Finding out just how much social protection floors cost is easy, thanks to the ILO’s new calculator. The ILO Social Protection Floors Calculator  makes it possible to estimate the costs of child and orphan allowances, maternity benefits, public works programmes for those without jobs, disability and old-age pensions,” the report said.

    The report also highlighted that the cost of universal benefits for 364 million children, 81 million pregnant women, 103 million persons with severe disabilities and 153 million older persons ranges from 0.3 per cent of GDP for Mongolia to 9.8 per cent of GDP for Sierra Leone – with an average cost of 4.2 per cent of GDP in 57 lower income countries.

    “From a global perspective, these life-changing benefits for 700 million people – nearly 10 per cent of the world’s population – would require only 0.23 per cent of global GDP. That’s just 1.1 per cent of what G20 countries spent to bail out the financial sector in 2009. It is a question of priorities,” said Isabel Ortiz, director of the ILO’s Social Protection Department.,

  • Workers’expectations in 2018, by Wabba

    Workers’expectations in 2018, by Wabba

    To workers, the outgoing year is tough. Many lost their jobs; some were not paid salaries. On another front, the continued fall of the naira and the rise in inflation, among others, made life difficult for them. However, labour is optimistic that 2018 will be better, writes TOBA AGBOOLA.

    To organised labour, the outgoing year has been very challenging.

    The  economy, was troubled and the citizenry, workers particularly, feet the pains.

    The workers are, however, optimistic that the incoming year will be better. Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President Ayuba Wabba, in this interview with The Nation, listed workers’expectations in 2018. He  said they expected the government to tackle unemployment, unpaid salaries and pension and introduce a new minimum wage.

    The NLC chief pledged that the sector would witness robust labour activities aimed at improving workers’welfare

    Wabba said the congress would recommit itself to leading the oppressed. In doing this, he said, the NLC leadership will conduct itself responsibly.

    The congress, he said, would liaise with her allies to engage the government and other critical stakeholders. Wabba asked for the support of workers and the masses for a better Nigeria.

    He said the outgoing year was  eventful and challenging for workers due to some developments in the polity, which tested their resilience.

     

    Job creation

    Following the thousands of jobs  lost last year, Wabba said the workers expected the government to invest in job creation initiatives in the new year.

    Wabba said: “Crisis of unemployment in the new year, and monumental unemployment will remain with us.”

    He said though the All Progressivess Congress (APC) government at the centre made clear its promise in its manifesto of delivering three million jobs yearly, he expressed sadness that after two years in the saddle, it is, perhaps, time to ask the government to give a scorecard to the Nigerians that went through a lot of odds to elect this government.

    He said: “How many jobs has the Federal Government and the 23 states controlled by the ruling party created in furtherance of its pledge to Nigerians during the electioneering campaign.

    “We had stated in our past new year’s messages, as well as other policy pronouncements, that we have some ideas on how we can create new and sustainable jobs.

    ‘’Unfortunately, no one in the government has thought it necessary to give us a hearing on what these ideas are, and what they entail.

    “At present, we are not even sure which ministry or agency of the government is the focal point on job creation.

    “What we have said of the ruling APC party, applies in large measures as well to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the states they control.

    “We will in the new year continue to knock on the doors of all organs of government and put on the agenda the massive unemployment situation the country is facing.”

    Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama, appealed to the Federal Government to remember its “change mantra”, adding that it makes no sense accusing and condemning the previous administrations for corruption only for the recovered money to be re-looted.

    “Mere leaving a political party for the ruling party must not make anybody a saint. Anti-graft agencies and the judiciary must prosecute those who were caught with our money. We know corruption is fighting back but we are confident that the war over evil will always emerge victorious. The world is watching and waiting for the pride of Africa and most populated black nation to blossom. The Federal Government’s economic recovery plan must not fail.  No more excuses,” he said.

     

    Unpaid salaries and pensions/retrenchments

    The NLC president said in the preceding year, the union tackled some state governments over non-payment of outstanding wages and pension of workers and pensioners.

    He said one of the legacies of the misrule of the preceding years is the  irregular and non-payment of retired civil servants, which, he said amounted to 12 months’arrears in many states.

    Wabba said: “In fairness to the Federal Government, President Buhari had made consistent efforts to bail out state governments to pay workers’ wages in the states as 27 of the 36 states were in default at the inception of the administration in Mays 2015.

    “In the New Year, the Congress would work with state councils of the NLC to engage state governments to pay up pension arrears of their retired employees, and to conclude arrangements to join the Contributory Pension Scheme as provided for in the Pensions Reform Act of 2014.

    “In the same vein, we shall mobilise for all employers to pay the new pensions contribution of 18 per cent of total pay which came into effect with the signing of the new Pension Act into law in July 2014.”

    He also said the congress anti-casualisation campaigns would be intensified in the New Year.

    He said the NLC would continue its campaign against the incidence of non-payment of salaries.

     

    Struggle against increase in price of petrol

    Wabba lamented that petroleum products price increase has been a recurring decimal in the past two decades and the argument has been the same. He said: “We continue to wonder why we cannot refine our products locally for domestic use and even for export, which in the long-run would create a chain of benefits.

    “The full implementation of all the palliative measures to cushion the effect of the increase in fuel price as recommended by the Technical Committee is still being awaited. We call on the government to expedite action on the implementation of the recommendations”.

    Nigeria   Union   of   Petroleum   and   Natural   Gas   Workers   (NUPENG)   in a statement signed by its President, Comrade Igwe Achese, decried the pains caused by the fuel scarcity.

    The Union frowned  at  the  incessant fuel scarcity, which has resulted to long queues, loss of man-hours and endless search for products. NUPENG  said the scarcity  has   further worsened the  citizens’ standard of living through increased  fares and goods and services’ prices.

    The Union called on the government to address the situation instead of trading blames when the depots are dry. It, therefore, called on the Federal Government to urge the appropriate bodies to flood the market with petroleum products in 2018 as a stopgap. In the long run, it stressed that the nation’s four refineries should be revamped to reduce the pressure on foreign exchange for petroleum products import.

     

    Minimum wage increment

    Labour expressed optimism that the Federal Government would give workers a good living wage.

    President Buhari last month okayed the appointment of a 30-member tripartite National Minimum Wage Committee for the negotiation of a new National Minimum Wage.

    Wabba said:“Our expectation is that the demand of labour will be met.

    “We will discuss with an open mind to ensure that we achieve our aims and objectives.’’

    He said the meeting with the tripartite committee would be a social dialogue and that of collective bargaining.

    According to him, the inauguration is long overdue and that effort will be made to fast-track negotiations to ensure that workers and pensioners get their accrued benefits.

    He said labour would discuss issues relating to rate of Naira because the exchange rate had increased from when N56,000 was being proposed by labour.

    NLC General Secretary, Mr Peter Ozo-Eson, also said the committee would discuss many issues affecting the minimum wage.

    According to Ozo-Eson, it is over two years since labour proposed N56,000 as minimum wage to the government; and so will consider some socio-economic indices to take its action.

    He said the labour was looking forward to the inauguration because the committee was made up of a tripartite group that would discuss issues affecting the workers.

    “We look forward to the inauguration, which I believe will discuss the facts and realities when it starts the negotiation.”

     

    Fight against corruption and for good governance

    Wabba said in furtherance of the union campaign for good governance and struggle against corruption, the Congress in collaboration with the TUC would continue to  support the Federal Government in the fight against corruption.

    ‘’We have maintained our historic commitment to the fight against corruption in our country because we are clear that our lack of development is largely attributable to the level of corruption in our polity.

    “For us, there is the need to strengthen the fight against corruption and make it holistic and speedy enough for Nigerians to reap the benefits by deploying the recovered looted funds into meaningful development ventures. We call on the National Assembly to expeditiously pass into law the two Executive Bills that we consider critical to make the fight against corruption effective, as follow “The Special Criminal Courts Bill”, which was submitted to the National Assembly last year; and the “Whistle Blowers and Witness Protection Bill”, meant to protest whistle blowers and witnesses from injury, death, economic sabotage, job termination, among others,” he said.

  • NARTO warns tanker drivers against aiding fuel smuggling

    NARTO warns tanker drivers against aiding fuel smuggling

    The National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, has warned Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), a branch of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), against conniving with  petroleum products smugglers, noting that anyone caught doing so would face the consequences.

    The body urged the National Assembly to not scrap the Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), warning  that this would worsen fuel distribution crisis across the country.

    In his address at the PTD Branch Executive Council meeting,     NARTO President, Alhaji Kassim Bataiya, insisted that the role of PEF in fuel distribution was vital.

    Bataiya said: “We cannot overemphasise the important and invaluable contribution of the Petroleum Equalisation Fund to the availability and accessibility of Petroleum products at the government approved prices to every citizen wherever they are residing.

    ”In fact, it would have been extremely difficult, if not practically impossible, for citizens in far Northwest, Northeast and some interior places in the Southwest, east and even Southsouth to have access to petroleum products and buy it at the approved prices, if Petroleum Equalisation Fund had not been in existence.”

    “So, we want to use this opportunity to say it will be rather unfortunate if the statement is true, considering the pivotal roles of PEF in the effective and efficient distribution of petroleum products in the country. We earnestly urge Senator Marafa and members of the National Assembly to rethink this matter to avoid worsening and compounding fuel distribution crisis in the country.”

    Bataiya also called on drivers not to allow themselves to be used by smugglers of petroleum products.

  • Hurdles before new minimum wage committee

    Hurdles before new minimum wage committee

    Apparently succumbing to persistent agitation by organised labour, coupled with the prevailing economic realities workers face, the Federal Government bowed to pressure by inaugurating a 30-man tripartite committee to review the minimum wage. But there are hurdles in actualising the new minimum wage, TOBA AGBOOLA reports.

    Three weeks ago, at the Council Chambers in Aso Rock, President Muhammadu Buhari inaugurated a 30-member minimum wage committee.

    The committee, which includes cabinet members, governors, labour leaders, and executives from the private sector, is expected to upwardly review Nigeria’s minimum wage from its present monthly rate of N18,900.

    The committee, headed by a former Minister and Head of Service of the Federation, Ms Ama Pepple, was charged with the task of recommending a fair, decent and living wage for Nigerian workers. With this development, it appears that the machinery for a new minimum wage regime for the country is underway.

    President Muhammadu Buhari during the inauguration said: “My hope is that the outcome of the deliberations of the committee would be consensual and generally acceptable”.

    The President went further to implore the committee to apply principles of full consultations with stakeholders while bearing in mind the core provisions of the International Labour Organisation Minimum Wage Fixing Convention N0 131 and Minimum Wage Fixing Machinery Convention No 26 in the task ahead.

    It will be recalled that  Nigeria joined the league of International Labour Organisation (ILO) member countries that set minimum wage for their workers in 1981. The last time a minimum wage was set before the current one being reviewed was in 2000 with effect from May 1, 2001. Then, the wage was set at a paltry N5,500. It took 10 years to have this benchmark reviewed through a collective bargaining mechanism. The NLC said the union made a demand for wage increase in 2009 after a thorough study of the salaries of political office holders’ pre-and post-consolidation, as well as a careful examination of the minimum annual wage levels in African countries. The study showed that Nigerian workers were among the least remunerated in the world.

    In order to negotiate this request from the NLC and the TUC, the Federal Government set up a tripartite committee made up of representatives from the government, labour and the organised private sector. After much negotiation, discussion, the committee proposed N18,000 in order to make it easy for all concerned employers of labour to implement. It was also proposed that the new wage will apply only to organisations with a minimum of 50 workers in their employment. This bill was passed and signed into law by former President Goodluck Jonathan on March 23, 2011. That was the update from the last exercise.

    Now, Nigerian workers are demanding N56, 000 new minimum wage. The question is, is that realisable given the current comatose economy where the extant N18, 000 minimum wage is not paid as and when due? The last exercise took about two years to conclude after the inauguration of the committee. How long will the current effort take before a new minimum wage comes into force? Is there a genuine intention on the part of the current administration to upwardly review the workers’ minimum wage? Is wage increase the solution to workers’ plight in Nigeria?

    There is no gainsaying that with the astronomic rise in the cost of living, Nigerian workers are right to demand wage increase.

    Chief Executive Officer of Economic Associates, an economic research firm, Dr  Ayo Teriba, said the real economic issue here was whether the current minimum wage rate was optimal or sub-optimal.

    “This means that do workers receive an income that allows them to live reasonably? In my opinion, if you divide 18,000 by 30 days, that is N600 per day.

    “What can anybody do with N600 per day? If you go to N56, 000, that brings it to a little bit over N1, 800; and anyone who says that figure might be inflationary is exaggerating. That’s less than what people earn as unemployment allowance in some countries. The amount is not even significant enough to affect money supply. I don’t think we should be talking about inflation.”

    On the limitations of government revenue, he said, “They should find money. States are in the business of finding money to govern. If you cannot raise money, leave your seat for someone else who can.”

    It is one thing to pass laws and another to implement them. Although the N18, 900 minimum wage was agreed to in 2011, compliance, according to a labour has remained low.

    Chairman, NLC, Lagos Chapter, Comrade Idowu Adelakun, lamented that the low compliance was due to selfishness on the part of employers.

    Adelakun stated: “Nigeria is blessed with abundance. Among oil producing countries, we are the ones who pay our workers the least amount of money. Still, as little as 18,000 and considering the recent economic situation in the country, some people still feel it is too big. Apart from private employers, what of our own government? The majority of state governments are not paying. Instead of paying the full N18, 000 they will be paying N9, 000, and what is that to a worker for 30 days? They only want the rich to be richer and the poor to be poorer.

    “Because the minimum wage is on the Exclusive List and is a law, it is binding on everybody, and those who don’t comply are criminals. As NLC, over the past two to three years, we have gone round states protesting on the streets about this noncompliance issue.”

    On how prepare the NLC is, in order  to ensure compliance, he said : “It is not every case you take to the court that you will win and you know that in this country, there are levels of complications in the judicial system; at the end of the day, they might say you lost. That is why we have taken our destiny in our own hands by protesting, picketing and doing everything to make sure that we have our rights. And that is what we continue to do”

    Director, Social, Economic and Labour Matters at the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association(NECA), Mr Olawale Timothy, said the private sector was very much ahead of the minimum wage rate.

    Timothy said, “We need to segregate which employers are in the category of those who do not comply. Employers in the private sector are paying way above N18, 000. There are sectors where the minimum wage is far above N50, 000. Generally, minimum wage in the private sector ranges between N33, 000 and N50, 000. So the private sector is out of it. So, the class of employers that applies to is probably the government, especially the state governments, and it will be unfair for me to speak on their behalf. However, they are represented on the committee, so they can at least canvass and articulate their position.”

  • Workers, FHA management disagree over promotion, staff welfare

    Workers, FHA management disagree over promotion, staff welfare

    Staff of the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) under the auspices if the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government Owned Companies has began a three day warning strike over what they described as refusal of the management of the establishment to effect the promotion of deserving workers since 2011 and implementing policies that are anti workers.

    But the management of the establishment said there was no basis for the strike action as the demands by the workers have been largely met, while the remaining potion of their demand require ministerial approval which it is waiting to secure.

    Addressing newsmen at the commencement of the action in Abuja, General Secretary of the Union, Comrade Ayo Olorunfemi said the workers had no other choice but to embark on the warning strike after series of notices to the management without sincere response.

    He accused the management of refusing to conduct promotion exercise since 2011 for deserving officers, adding that a lot of officers of the agency who retired from service have been  because of the stagnation created in the system.

    The union also accused government of deliberately denying workers in the agency from rising above certain level, while using allocating positions that should be occupied by career civil servants to political appointees, pointing out that retired workers of the agency have been employed to fill positions that should be occupied by those in service.

    They also accused the management of non payment of outstanding housing allowances to staff on grade levels 14 and above, refusal to remit statutory deductions from the salary of staff to the National Health Insurance Scheme and the National Housing Fund thereby denying them access to health care and housing.

    He also said that the management of the agency has also not remitted tax deductions from workers salaries to the appropriate agency of government thereby denying them tax clearance.

    Reacting to the allegations, Managing Director of the FHA, Prof. Mohammed Al-Amin said the agency has set in motion machinery to ensure that the position of a General Manager is occupied by civil servants and not political appointees.

    He explained that the reposition of the agency before his assumption of office removed it from government budget and slated it for privatization, adding that on assumption of office, he advices the government against outright sale of the place.

  • AUPCTRE kicks against proposed sale of national assets

    AUPCTRE kicks against proposed sale of national assets

    The Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) on Tuesday condemned the idea of selling the National Theatre, Iganmu, to fund parts of the 2018 budget.

    This idea had been floated by the Director General of Budget Office, Mr. Ben Akabueze, when he appeared before the House of Representatives Joint Committees on 2018-2020 Medium Term Expenditure .

    The national assets to be sold, according to Akabueze, also include the Tafawa Balewa Square, and some selected power plants under the National Integrated Power Projects (NIPP).

    Akabueze had argued that these assets were “generating too little revenue” for the government to continue operating them under the current fiscal weather.

    But AUPCTRE, which held a vociferous rally at the National Theatre protesting the move, described the planned sale as insensible.

    National Theatre Branch Chairman of AUPCTRE, Mr. Dayo Akogun, noted that this was not the first time the Federal Government was attempting to sell the historic monument.

    Akogun pointed out that the public perception of the National Theatre as a show of shame mismanaged by civil servants was now outdated as the edifice had received a facelift within the eight months tenure of the new Artistic Director, Tar Ukoh.

    “They told a great lie that there is no water, no electricity, no air conditioning in the National Theatre,” Akogun said.

    Before the rally swung into full gear, Akogun led a team of journalists through the Theatre’s multiple conference rooms and cinema halls, which dazzled with light and cold comfort from the air conditioning. However, at a point, the power supply was interrupted and it took several minutes before the generators kicked in.

  • ‘4billion people worldwide are left without social protection’

    ‘4billion people worldwide are left without social protection’

    The new report from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on Social protection shows that massive efforts are still needed to ensure that the right to social security becomes a reality for all.

    Despite significant progress in the extension of social protection in many parts of the world, the human right to social security is not yet a reality for a majority of the world’s population, says a new flagship report from the International Labour Organization (ILO).

    According to new data presented in the “World Social Protection Report 2017/19: Universal social protection to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals,” only 45 per cent of the global population is effectively covered by at least one social benefit, while the remaining 55 per cent– 4 billion people – are left unprotected.

    The report assesses the range of social protection benefits for children, for women and men of working age — including protection in case of maternity, unemployment, employment injury and disability — and for older persons, including pensions. It also assesses progress towards universal coverage in health.

    The new data of the report also shows that only 29 per cent of the global population enjoys access to comprehensive social security – a small increase compared to 27 per cent in 2014-2015 –  while the other 71 per cent, or 5.2 billion people, are not, or only partially, protected.

    In Africa, despite significant progress in the extension of social protection coverage in many countries, only 18 per cent of the African population is effectively covered by at least one social benefit.

    Despite the overall low coverage, a number of countries have achieve universal coverage: Bostwana, Cabo Verde, Lesotho, Mauritius, Namibia, South Africa and Zanzibar (Tanzania). In this countries, all older persons receive a pension, and they are regarded as global good examples.

    Universal coverage may be done social grants or social assistance, or by a combination of social insurance and social assistance (or social grants) like Cabo Verde and South Africa.

    Owing to greater efforts towards extending old age protection, 30 per cent of Africa’s older population now receive a pension.

    However, significant coverage gaps remain with respect to children, mothers with new-borns, unemployed workers, and persons with disabilities as well as vulnerable populations. The development of social protection floors is therefore an urgent priority in Africa.

    “The lack of social protection leaves people vulnerable to ill-health, poverty, inequality and social exclusion throughout their lifecycle. Denying this human right to 4 billion people worldwide is a significant obstacle to economic and social development. While many countries have come a long way in strengthening their social protection systems, major efforts are still necessary to ensure that the right to social protection becomes a reality for all,” said ILO Director-General Guy Ryder.

    The report highlights that universal social protection contributes to eradicating poverty, reducing inequality, promoting economic growth and social justice, as well as achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

    While extending coverage is a primary objective, attention needs to be paid to benefit adequacy, as the levels of social protection benefits are often insufficient to bring people out of poverty and insecurity.

    “It is necessary to increase public expenditures on social protection” said Isabel Ortiz, Director of the ILO Social Protection Department, “to provide at least a basic social protection floor to all.”

    The report also stresses the need to extend social protection to workers in the informal economy as a way of formalizing and improving their working conditions.

    For many children, a social protection benefits can make the difference between going to school or working, having better nutrition and health. Africa is a young continent, 40 per cent of its population are children, more efforts are needed.

    “Fiscal space for extending social protection exists even in the poorest countries. Governments should be proactive in exploring all possible financing options to promote national development through decent jobs and social protection,” Isabel Ortiz added.

    Main findings

    The ILO report looks at specific aspects of social protection, providing global and regional findings based on new data in the following areas:

    Social protection for children:

    •           The report shows that only 35 per cent of children worldwide enjoy effective access to social protection. Almost two thirds of children globally – 1.3 billion children – are not covered, most of them living in Africa and Asia.

    •           On average, just 1.1 per cent of GDP is spent on child and family benefits for children aged 0-14, pointing to significant underinvestment in children.

    Social protection for women and men of working age

    •           Social protection coverage for persons of working age is still limited. Only 41.1 per cent of mothers with newborns receive a maternity benefit, and 83 million new mothers remain uncovered.

    •           Other findings in this area include the fact only 21.8 per cent of unemployed workers are covered by unemployment benefits, while 152 million unemployed workers remain without coverage.

    •           New ILO data also shows that only 27.8 per cent of persons with severe disabilities worldwide receive a disability benefit.

    Social protection for older men and women

    •           The research says that, worldwide, 68 per cent of people above retirement age receive an old-age pension, which is associated with the expansion of both non-contributory and contributory pensions in many middle- and low-income countries.

    •           With expenditure on pensions and other benefits for older people accounting for 6.9 per cent of GDP on average with large regional variations, the report underlines that benefit levels are often low and not enough to push older people out of poverty. This trend is often fuelled by austerity measures.

    •

    Universal health coverage

    •           The report shows that the right to health is not a reality yet in many parts of the world, especially in rural areas where 56 per cent of the population lacks health coverage, compared to 22 per cent in urban areas. An estimated additional 10 million health workers would be needed to achieve universal health coverage and ensure human security, including in emergency situations such as an Ebola crisis.

    •           An estimated 10 million health workers are needed to achieve universal health coverage and ensure human security, including from highly infectious diseases like Ebola. The shortfall of 7 million skilled health workers in rural areas as well as high deficits in per capita health spending add to these rural─urban inequities. Ensuring equity in access to quality care and solidarity in financing is central to extending health protection.

    •           Long-term care – mostly needed by older people – still excludes more than 48 per cent of the world’s population, with women disproportionately affected.  Only 5.6 per cent of the global population lives in countries that provide long-term care coverage based on national legislation for the whole population.

    •           Because of this, an estimated 57 million unpaid “voluntary” workers provide the bulk of long-term care coverage. Many of them are women who carry most of the burden of informal care for family members. More investment in care services could alleviate old-age poverty and generate millions of jobs to address the shortage of skilled care workers, estimated at 13.6 million globally.

    The World Social Protection Report offers a broad range of global, regional and country data on social protection coverage, benefits and public expenditures on social protection. By presenting new estimates on effective social protection coverage, it provides the 2015 baseline for the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) indicator 1.3.1.

    Adopted in 2015, the UN’s SDGs reflect the joint commitment of countries to “implement nationally appropriate social protection systems for all, including floors” for reducing and preventing poverty (SDG 1.3).

    This commitment to universalism reaffirms the global agreement on the extension of social security achieved by the ILO’s Social Protection Floors Recommendation No. 202, adopted by governments, workers and employers from 185 countries in 2012.