The Nation Newspaper

Tag: AUPCTRE

  • ‘We’ve right to belong to trade union’

    The Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations Civil Service Technical and Recreation Services Employees (AUPCTRE) has said it has the right to belong to a trade union as enshrined in Section 4 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

    A statement issued by Comrade Ayeoribe Emmanuel, on behalf of AUPCTRE General Secretary, said the Constitution which guarantees freedom of association of citizens to belong to any political party, trade union or any other association for the protection of their interests, has duly clarified the membership crisis between the union and the management of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government Owned Companies (SSASCGOC).

    Ayeoribe said: “It is malicious and untrue the recent statement issued by SSASCGOC that the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment has warned the union against disrupting the activities of the management of SON, saying it was meant to discredit the ministry and misinformed the public.”

    He argued that its rights to exist as a trade union was further affirmed in the Trade Union’s (Amendment) ACT 2005 Section 2(4) which states: “Membership of a trade union by employees shall be voluntary and no employees shall be forced to join any trade union or be victimised for refusing to join or remain a member.”

    He, therefore, said the union found it strange that SSASCGOC, under whatever guise, could claim AUPCTRE is a junior staff union even as he claimed that AUPCTRE had been the sole trade union organising workers in SON ever since.

    He alleged that SSASCGOC had poached on its legitimate members in SON with the tacit connivance of some officials of SON, who were not satisfied with the upright posture of AUPCTRE leadership in SON.

    Comrade Ayeoribe added that the claim of SSASCGOC that AUPCTRE, in conjunction with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), was threatening to picket SON amounted to weeping more than the bereaved as SSASCGOC had never been known to be the Public Relations Officer of SON.

     

  • 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.

  • AUPCTRE challenges Fed Govt on workers’ promotion arrears

    AUPCTRE challenges Fed Govt on workers’ promotion arrears

    The Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Technical and Recreational Employees (AUPCTRE) has appealed to the Federal Government to expedite action on the payment of promotion arrears to public servants.

    Its Chairman, Federal Capital Territory Chapter, Mr. Benjamin Anthony, made the appeal in a statement issued in Abuja.

    Anthony said: “The payment will go a long way in alleviating the pains of the workers in view of the current economic crunch.’’

    He praised the Federal Government for the approval of N44 billion for the payment of backlog of promotion arrears, salary shortfalls and other claims owed the federal public servants since year 2012.

    According to him, the present administration deserve a special commendation for the giant stride that will encourage workers to put in their best for the country’s development.

    Anthony said this was in spite of the economic challenges facing the country.

    He also urged AUPCTRE leaders in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to ensure strict compliance and implementation of proper placement of salary steps of workers.

    The AUPCTRE chairman said that a circular from the Office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation dated July 14, 2014 marked “HCSF/CSO/HRM/POL.1402/1/25’’ had directed the implementation.

    He said  the circular was, however, not being implemented by many MDAs as directed by the government.

    Anthony said the union observed with dismay that many organisations claimed ignorance of the circular and, in the process, wrongly placed their workers on salary steps during promotion.

  • AUPCTRE threatens industrial action

    The Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) has threatened to ask its members to go on strike.

    AUPCTRE National President Solomon Adelegan issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET).

    Adelegan said this became necessary due to the inability of NIMET’s management to respect and implement the agreement reached with the union at a meeting last December.

    According to him, some of the issues discussed and agreed at the meeting include, “Commencement of full implementation of the recently approved Condition of Service/Addendum for NIMET workers; effective date of 2013 promotion; mandatory training for would-be retirees; staff quarters occupied by retired officers and payment of 2015 Ex-gratia.”

    Adelegan lamented that NIMET was yet to fulfill its part of the agreement, despite an earlier ultimatum.

    The letter said: “Unfortunately, your management has neither signed any agreement on the issues resolved upon nor implemented any items of the resolution of the meeting. As a result, workers have become agitated, restive and have continued to protest against the management.”

    The union added that it was constrained to issue the seven-day ultimatum which began last Friday, adding that the management is expected, within the seven days, to resolve all outstanding issues, warning that “failure to comply, your management should not hold the union responsible for whatever action it may deem necessary to take”.

  • Privatisation killing workers, says union leader

    THE Federal Government is making workers to suffer under the guise of privatisation and commercialisation, the national President of Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Service Employees (AUPCTRE), Comrade Solomon Adelegan, has alleged.

    He pointed out that workers have been retrenched under government’s claim of downsizing the economy, lamenting that several of them were relieved without pay.

    The situation, Adelegan stated, has led to the untimely death of many of the retrenched workers.

    The union leader said workers have nothing to celebrate on the occasion of the nation’s 54th independence.

    Many of them, he regretted, are struggling with a minimum wage of N18, 000 that can hardly take them home, let alone satisfying their needs.

    Adelegan, who spoke in an interview, said: “This government, under the pretence of privatisation and commercialisation is making the workers suffer.

    “We know how many of our members that have been retrenched as a result of privatisation which has led to several untimely deaths of many of these workers.

    “We know that of PHCN. After the privatisation, PHCN is even worst. Who are the people that buy this equipments and companies? Is it not the people who are there?

    “The government is contemplating privatising the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), an agency that is set up ordinarily to ensure that housing is affordable to the common man.

    “Their plan now is to privatise it and in the process, we know that they must downsize workers again.

    “They disengage people without paying them, forgetting that they have children and families to take care of and we are here talking about celebrating our independence with the harsh policies of the government on our members.”

    He added: “The workers will be happier if their jobs are secured, their take- home pay improved and the work environment improved and secured.

    “Restructuring doesn’t work that way. Restructuring is a two-way traffic. Where you cut here and you cut here, you balance here.

    “It needs to go simultaneously and is synergised in the middle. That is the problem with the Nigerian restructuring system.”

     

  • Museum workers lay siege over salary structure, victimisation

    Museum workers lay siege over salary structure, victimisation

    WORKERS of the National Commission for Museum and Monument (NCMM) on Friday laid siege to the office located in Wuse in Abuja, over alleged victimisation by the management, lack of implementation of the required salary structures for workers and non-payment of arrears.

    The workers under the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Service Employees (AUPCTRE) further accused the management of NCMM for allegedly refusing to implement the CONRAISS salary structure.

    The workers, who have been on strike for the past two months, also accused the management of refusing to pay their arrears and alleged victimisation of union members, which led to the suspension of their Secretary, AUPCTRE, NCMM chapter, Comrade Adogah Abdullahi, three months ago.

    Head of Department, Industrial Relations of AUPCTRE, Comrade Ayeoribe Akin, threatened that if the management refuses to bow to their demands, the picketing of the office will continue picketing indefinitely.

    He said: “Sometime in 2010, we wrote to the management that this institution is a research institution and the workers should be paid CONRAISS. It was a tug of war and they eventually agreed and we took it to the ministry, which agreed. But unfortunately after the ministry submitted our report to the Wages and Salaries Commission, up till now, our management has not shown any readiness to comply.

    “Other allowances are also pending. We have reminded them several times but as much as we are demanding, they are denying us. Last year, we embarked on a strike which lasted for some time until the intervention of the National Assembly. But rather than address these issues, they have gone ahead to suspend the Secretary of NCMM. This victimisation must stop!

    The management of NCMM has, however, denied some of the allegations. Its Director of Administration and Supply, Barrister Emeka Onuagbu, said Adoga was suspended because he breached the public service rules, in addition to committing other infractions.

    He added, “To the best of the management’s knowledge, we have about three or four issues raised by the union and we have virtually met all the conditions. On the issue of CONRAISS, they have been part of this CONRAISS policy with the Salaries and Wages Commission.

    “We met with the Minister of Culture and Tourism and a committee was set up to get the CONRAISS for the commission and at the end of the day, a report was written by the committee comprising the management of the commission, ministry and the union and submitted to the ministry and thereafter to the Salaries and Wages Commission and since then we have been following the development.”

     

    “When this management came on board, there was no CONRAISS in the commission. It was the relentless efforts of the management that made the government release the CONRAISS structure to the commission, since then, we have been pursuing the CONRAISS for everybody in the commission. This is about salary and the ultimate approval will come from the Federal Government and not the Commission.”

     

  • Lagos urges union to embrace dialogue

    Lagos urges union to embrace dialogue

    Lagos State Government has urged its unions to embrace the option of dialogue as a means of resolving industrial dispute with the government.

    The state Commissioner of Establishments, Training and Pensions, Mrs Florence Oguntuase, gave the advice at the fifth Quadrennial state delegate’s conference of Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Service Employees (AUPCTRE), in Lagos.

    Oguntuase, who was represented by the assistant Director, Industrial Relations in the Ministry, Mrs Ismail Temitope, said the relative peace recorded in the state had been as a result of co-operation and understanding that ensued between the Government and Labour Unions.

    According to her, “AUPCTRE as a body of trade union in the state has contributed immensely towards harmonious industrial relationship, between the government and its workforce in terms of resourceful and valuable comments and suggestions from the executive members.”

    She said the government would continue to support all the Labour Unions within her ambit to maintain the industrial peace and harmony adding that the present administration is more concerned about welfare of staff so as to enable them carry out their task effectively.

    The newly elected Leader of the Union, Mr. Muali Subair, assured that the union would continue to work together with government to achieve a desirable atmosphere through constructive and objective dialogue.

    He said the success achieved by the Lagos State government wouldn’t have been possible without co-operation of the workers through the Union, which he promised would continued in the coming years as the administration have shown tremendous and commendable commitment to workers welfare.

    He added that Labour Unions are engines for development in the country, especially the Third World countries no matter the challenge saying that Labour continue to serve as partner in progress and catalyst that propel development in a legitimate way.

    Highlight of the conference include conferment of merit awards on some Nigerians, that have contributed in one way or the order to labour course in the state.