…as ILO laments inability of workers to meet basic needs
The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has said a well-structured and independent adjudication system as well as swift, impartial, and fair decisions delivered by Courts and arbitration mechanisms were key to industrial peace and economic growth.
President and Chairman of Council (NECA), Dr. Ifeanyi Okoye said this during the 3rd Annual Labour Adjudication and Arbitration Forum (LAAF) themed ‘Labour Adjudication and Appellate Jurisdiction: Challenges and Prospects,’ on Thursday in Abuja.
The NECA chair, who noted that labour relations were becoming increasingly complex, said that the role of a strong appellate system in upholding justice and maintaining industrial harmony by ensuring disputes between employers and employees were resolved with fairness and equity, could not be overstated.
He said: “At NECA, we firmly believe that a well-structured and independent adjudication system is essential for industrial peace and economic growth. The ability of our Courts and arbitration mechanisms to deliver swift, impartial, and fair decisions is key to building trust between employers and employees.
“It is our collective duty, as social partners, to ensure that these institutions remain credible, effective, and adaptable to modern labour realities. In this regard, I appeal to all relevant authorities to expedite the passage of the reviewed labour laws, ensuring that they reflect current realities and global best practices.
“Additionally, I urge that the National Labour Advisory Council be resuscitated and remain active, as its role in fostering constructive engagement among social partners is invaluable in promoting industrial harmony and sustainable economic development.”
Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Mr. Gilbert Houngbo expressed worry over the inability of workers to meet essential basic needs with their take-home pay after working not less than 50 hours a week.
Houngbo said there was a need for the Federal Government and Africa in general, to move away from minimum wage to a living wage to enable workers to cater to their needs.
He said: “One critical factor for us is the living wage. We want to appreciate the effort made by the government to increase the minimum wage from N30,000 to N70,000, more than double, which is a decisive effort from the government.
“Now, at the same token, I cannot listen to the concern about the workers in terms of the existing costs of living, particularly when it comes to the different dimensions of their daily lives. But to make it even more complicated, we do believe in ILO that we have to move away from the concept of minimum wage to a concept of living wage. It is absolutely unacceptable that a citizen would be working 50 hours a week, 60 hours a week, across the world, not only in
Nigeria, yet not able to respond to the basic needs basically for himself, for herself, for the family, and for the community and therefore, it’s essential.
“This is why I really appreciate this initiative coming from NECA because we do know that the more the business will prosper, the more the economy will prosper, and the more we will create fiscal space for the government to be able to respond as well as to the social needs of the population at large.
“I really hope this gathering will continue, that NECA will continue creating this forum for all of us to be able to look at these issues and move forward in a way that will always balance the three pillars; economy, social, and environmental.”
The DG ILO urged Nigeria to embrace the many opportunities technology presents to create decent jobs for the teeming population of youths.
He said: “When you look at that in the context of Nigeria or Africa, how do we want to capitalise on this opportunity if we do not put the job creation, the decent job creation, at the centre of our policy?
“I do believe that true employment, job creation has to remain central in our policymaking, particularly in response to the need not only to address the economic challenges that countries, including but not limited to Nigeria are facing, but also ensuring that the social outcry of the workers, particularly those workers that are still struggling to pay their basic needs, are addressed.”
President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, who raised concerns over plans by the government to move labour from the exclusive to the concurrent list, lamented the failure and unwillingness of some state governments to pay the N70,000 new minimum wage to workers in Nigeria.
Ajaero said: “There is a threat to taking Labour to the concurrent list, It has a potential danger to industrialisation practice.
“Even when we have looked at minimum wage of N70,000, we have a situation whereby sub-nationals are not willing to pay and they prefer to pay their own minimum wage and this, to a very large extent, is an infringement on workers rights and it is a threat to the rights of citizens. If somebody in Adamawa is receiving N20,000, and a person in Abuja is receiving N50,000, are they receiving the higher level of rights? The minimum wage is a benchmark for which nobody should go below.”
The NLC president lamented the delay in reviewing the labour laws in the country.
Ajaero said: “The delay in concluding the work which was supposed to have been finished by the partners on the review of labour laws, the number of days it has stayed there is enough to make concluding the review obsolete. So I think we need to fasten this as much as possible.”
On legal arbitration, the NLC President regretted that workers without financial means to hire a lawyer are unable to have their cases addressed in courts, even as he frowned at the delays of cases, especially in specialised courts with many unable to get justice until they die.
He said: “If a worker does not have money to hire a lawyer the matter will not be heard and in most instances, cases are delayed in those specialised courts for long.
“If somebody is dismissed from work and the matter is delayed for 6, 7, 8, 10 years, some of them die while still on the case. So that is a danger. They are processing reform where you can use conservation, you can use mediation, and you can even use consultation. In most instances, it is not even the Federal Ministry of Labour that refers these matters to court. It goes straight to court, which is contrary to the process.”
Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Dingyadi assured Nigerians that President Bola Tinubu’s government was always committed to addressing the needs of workers.
He said: “Mr President is always committed with very good listening ears to talk to and to work with our workers and to ensure that we work together as a team for the economic development of our dear country. For us to do this, we have to carry everybody along and to ensure that we understand ourselves and we agree on all the issues that are before us.
“I want to assure you that we will do our best to work together and to listen to you so that we can solve our common problems for the good of our dear country.”
The Director-General of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde described the forum as pan-African in nature.
“Whatever happens here in the context of labor and industrialisation between employers, between workers, between governments, it has far-reaching consequences within the African continent
“In the West Africa sub region, Africa as a whole and the world in general and hopefully, who knows, the fourth edition might just be an international labour forum,” he added.
