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Tag: NLC

  • NLC pushes for periodic minimum wage review

    • Seeks capital punishment for corrupt officials

    The President, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba said though about 95 per cent of the 36 states in the federation have so far implemented the minimum wage law, it should be reviewed every five years to take care of the  changing economic realities.

    He said this is necessary to avoid corruption among workers, arguing that when civil servants are poorly remunerated, they are most likely going to dip their hands into public till.

    Wabba who spoke at the weekend by phone, said despite the differences in the levels of compliance, the minimum wage law has been a successful story.

    He said: “Although the implementation of the minimum wage is not uniform, but, we can still say it has been a success.

    “For instance, in some states, they pay 70 per cent, while some pay 75 per cent. The implementation or increase in some states was also determined on the grade level. But the issue is that there is need for it to be uniform and there is also need for the review every five years. This is our proposal.”

    He identified corruption as the major challenge besetting the country, lamenting that it  had badly damaged the core of the country’s national existence. He added that the political leadership of the country must act decisively to take the country out from the edge of the precipice.

    He urged President Muhammadu Buhari to press it upon the legislature to tinker with the law to prescribe death sentence for state officials found to have embezzled public funds.

    He said: “Fighting corruption is crucial to our development; if everyone can shun corruption and use the available resources judiciously, Nigeria will be a better place for all.

    “If capital punishment can happen in China, India and South Africa, it should also happen in Nigeria; Labour will support whatever measure that will address  corruption in the country.

    “As organised labour, we firmly believe that the political leadership of our country must act decisively to get us out of the brink of disaster that greed and primitive accumulation through open looting of our commonwealth in the last six years, has brought us to.”

    He said most Nigerians had been deprived standard quality life due to massive corruption in the polity, adding that the organised labour would no longer watch the culture of impunity.

    According to him, the NLC is in full support of the establishment of anti-corruption courts to try corruption cases in the country.

    Wabba added that the Federal Government should ensure that all funds illegally taken from the treasury was traced and the perpetrators brought to book.

    He called for the strengthening of anti-corruption laws and the provision of stringent punishment for looters to serve as a deterrent to others, stressing that a situation where governors could not pay workers salary for months was worrisome.

  • NLC to Sanusi: Promote policies that reduce poverty

    The Nigeria Labour Congress on Wednesday asked the Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi ll to concentrate on promoting policies that will reduce poverty among his people rather than promoting those that will further impoverish them.

    The congress said it was unfortunate that the Emir will be calling for further devaluation of the naira when industries in his emirate have totally collapsed, leaving the emirate with one of the highest population of victims of anti-people policies.

    In a statement titled: “Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II’s Anti People Campaigns Should Be Ignored,” and signed by its president, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, the NLC said the traditional institution in the country should speak for and protect the poor and must not become outposts of neo liberal institutions.

    The statement reads: “The former Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria and now Emir of Kano, Mallam Muhammadu Sanusi II has been widely reported by some newspapers to have openly canvassed the devaluation of our national currency, the Naira as well as total removal of subsidy on petroleum products by the Federal Government.

    “We believe the Emir was expressing his private opinion and not speaking for the traditional institution or his emirate where industries have totally collapsed leaving the emirate with one of the highest population of victims of anti-people policies powered by neo liberal interests.

    “The eminence of his position as an emir should not be rubbished with constant proclamations or campaigns for policies that has proven over the years as not only damaging to our national economy, but targeted against majority of our people who flounder in abject poverty.

    “The traditional institution should speak for and protect the poor, and must not be turned to outposts of neo liberal institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank and their cohorts who imposed policies such as the Structural Adjustment Programme under which the Naira was devastatingly devalued while production halted with the near total collapse of industries.

    “As an import driven country, the effect of devaluing our national currency is more on the quality of life of ordinary Nigerians who bear the brunt of high cost of goods and services given the fact that the exchange rate of the Naira to the dollar has gone record high from N154 to a dollar to over N225 to one dollar.”

     

  • Imo denies alleged harassment of workers

    Imo denies alleged harassment of workers

    Imo State Government, Thursday described as unfounded, the allegation that it brutalized and chased out workers from their offices with security operatives after it concessioned the parastatals.

    The Secretary-General of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson had in a press statement, accused the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha of setting a dangerous precedence by maltreating workers in the state and using the Police to eject them from their offices, so as to concession the parastatals.

    He threatened that the NLC will resist the attempt by the Imo State government to concession the parastatals.

    But the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Sam Onwuemeodo, in a statement, said that the state government only concessioned the management of the parastatals to reposition it for better performance and not the parastatals as reported by the NLC scribe.

    According to the statement, “it is important to first and foremost, correct an impression over the action of the State Government on the parastatals. The truth is that Governor Okorocha or the Rescue Mission Government in the State has not concessioned any parastatal in the State. What the government had done was to concession the managements of the parastatals to make them productive. Concessioning the parastatals and concessioning the managements of the parastatals are not the same.

    “Again, no ugly development has ever taken place since the issue of concessioning the managements of the parastatals came on board, including resistance by the workers in the establishments, to warrant the involvement of the police in any way and for any reason. So, accusing the Governor of using the police to chase the workers away, arrest, brutalize and tear-gas them was totally false. And we take exception to that lie.”

    He added that, “we would also want to challenge the NLC National Secretary to prove his allegation, otherwise we would take it as cheap blackmail.

    “The state government’s resolve to concession the managements of these parastatals was only borne out of the desire to make them productive. These parastatals are as old as the state, but they had failed or refused to do the job for which they were set up, in the first place.

    “No patriotic Nigerian or people-oriented organization would support a situation whereby an establishment would be receiving the approved subventions from the State Government, but for long, would have nothing to display either to justify its existence or justify the financial investment in them, especially when these parastatals are not charitable organizations or NGOs.

    “The most unfortunate aspect of the whole story is that even those that were set up to generate revenue for the government had failed to do that and they became parasites on the finances of the State Government with nothing to show for all these. And no responsible or responsive government or governor would see all these and fail to take action.

    “Even before concessioning these parastatals, the government had met severally with the leaders of the organized Labour in the state, and in each meeting, the governor himself had taken time to explain why the concession of the managements of these parastatals should be the most acceptable action to take this time, since, even in the private sector, nobody would like to continue making an investment without anything to show for it at the end of the day.

    “On the fate of the workers in the affected parastatals, the Governor agreed to pay them all their outstanding salaries and also offered them the options of either being posted out to other government Ministries and Agencies or being paid off since the parastatals need fresh ideas and fresh personnel to re-position them and make them functional to achieve the goals behind their establishment ab-initio.

    “However, on the threat of the National Secretary of the NLC, we just want to remind him that Labour unions all over the world are always progressive and not retrogressive. And also let him know, with due respect, that NLC cannot dictate to the Governor of the state or the state government on how to run the affairs of the state.”

     

  • Gombe NLC to flush out ‘ghost’ workers

    The Gombe State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has said it will conduct a staff audit with biometric data capture to rid the state of “ghost” workers.

    NLC State Chairman Haruna Kamara addressed reporters in Gombe at this year’s World Day for Decent Work.

    The NLC chairman urged the state’s workers to be punctual in their offices and close at the right time to meet their obligations.

    He reminded civil servants of their crucial responsibilities because “without civil servants, no government can progress”.

    Kamara added: “I will also like to call on civil servants in Gombe State to reciprocate government’s gesture by going to work on time and closing on time. They should know, as civil servants, that they have an obligation to meet.”

    The labour leader urged “civil servants in Gombe State to remain calm, especially on issues that are yet to be resolved”.

    These, he said, included the pending promotion arrears and implementation of salaries for teachers in primary schools and the restoration of 50 per cent allowances cut during the N18,000 minimum wage negotiations.

    He appealed to retirees, who had been waiting for their gratuity, to be a little more patient.

    Kamara added: “The NLC is discussing with Gombe state government with a view to settling these gratuities.”

    Also, the state chapter of the NLC has given the House of Assembly till October 26 to ensure that the allowances owed teachers are paid.

    It threatened to take up the matter with the House, at the expiration of the ultimatum.

  • Assembly workers urged to shun NLC strike

    Cross River State House of Assembly’s Speaker John Gaul Lebo has urged the Assembly’s workers to shun the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) strike and resume work today.

    Lebo said: “The House of Assembly, as an institution, is ahead of the issues raised by Labour. The most critical points by the union with respect to the strike are not arguable issues. They relate to the House of Assembly’s workers’ salaries, which have been paid regularly, at least by the 25th of each month; impress and statutory allowances have been regularly paid.

    “Given the context of the immediate picture analysis, the strike is not the best evacuation corridor to resolve any issue now or in the future. As legislative architects, the House of Assembly workers occupy a special place in the state’s governance machinery.”

  • NLC drums up support for Trustfund

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has urged Nigerian workers to review upwards the patronage of their  Pension Fund  Administrator, Trustfund Pensions Plc.

    The NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, in his address at the congress leadership retreat in Calabar, Cross River State, lamented that the patronage of  workers of the PFA was less than encouraging.

    “It needs to be emphasised that the rate of patronage of the Trustfund PLC, in which we have 10 per cent share in, and which affords Congress the opportunity to nominate a representative on the Board of Directors, is far from encouraging.”, he said

    As a step towards addressing the problems, the NLC boss said the congress will need to review why this is so, and take steps to remedy it.

    The Managing Director of Trustfund Pensions Plc, Mrs. Helen Da-Souza, in her presentation at the event, commended organised labour, whom she said has been in the vanguard of shaping popular opinion and government policies on social security and pensions through various initiatives.

    She said: “This has rightly made labour a major stakeholder in the pension industry in the country.

    “Trustfund Pension Plc’s ownership structure is utmost formidable selling point in the pension market place. Organised Labour/Social Partners- the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC); Trade Union Congress (TUC) and Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), are key investors in Trustfund Pensions Plc.”

    She noted that organised labour, beyond its financial investment, is recognised as a major stakeholder and driver of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), especially in the private sector and in states where the CPS has been introduced and implemented.

    On the challenges of non remittance by the employers and state governments, Da-Souza said over over 30 per cent Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) are unfunded, adding that inspite of the coverage to state and local governments, less than 10, out of 36 states have fully implemented the CPS.

    She however noted that despite roles played by organised labour in the success of the CPS, Trustfund is yet to enjoy the level of support and patronage expected of a company in which labour has a strong stake.

  • NLC accuses some states of diverting bailout cash

    NLC accuses some states of diverting bailout cash

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday accused some governors, after receiving bailout funds from the Federal Government to pay workers’ salaries and pensions, of diverting the money into fixed deposit accounts for personal gains.

    NLC President Ayuba Wabba levelled the accusation against the governors in his message to Nigerians on today’s 55th Independence anniversary.

    The labour leader said such action was unacceptable and would be resisted.

    He  said the NLC was working with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to track such  funds and take appropriate actions.

    Wabba hailed the National Council of State and President Muhammadu  Buhari for paying the backlog of salaries.

    But the labour leader regretted that the enthusiasm and commitment by the Council of State and the President on the matter had not been replicated in some states.

    He alleged that rather than pay salaries and pensions, some of the governors “have elected to play politics with the welfare of their workers with some of them quoted as saying that they reserve the right to do what they like with the intervention fund from the federal government since it is a loan.

    “We note particularly that payment of pensions at state and local governments is a major problem because they operate defined benefit pension system which often times is not funded. And even when it is funded, the governors and their cohorts help themselves to these funds because they are exposed.

    “We condemn this attitude and strongly warn that henceforth, any state that defaults in the regular payment of salaries and pensions will face the wrath of the workers. Salaries and pensions are inalienable rights of workers and retirees and not privileges. We also call for pension reforms at state and local government levels to enhance the security of pension funds and regular payments.

    “We would want to sound a note of caution to the governors who have fixed the intervention funds in banks for pecuniary benefits. It is totally unacceptable. The Nigeria Labour Congress is working with ICPC to track the fixed funds for the purpose of taking appropriate action”.

    The NLC President argued that the performance of the economy has been of great concern to Labour, stressing that “in the months preceding the 2015 general elections, the performance nosedived largely due to a number of reasons including dwindling oil sales in the international market, fiscal indiscipline, corruption, rising cost of governance and unhelpful macro-economic policies.

    “However, the general elections, arguably was the trigger, as the economy cascaded to its lowest ebb immediately after the elections, in recent years. Funding the 2015 budget was difficult, government borrowed to pay salaries.

    “Even then, not all MDAs were paid. Save two or three states, the rest were unable to pay salaries or pensions leading to a backlog of up to six months or more.  The Naira was massively devalued while inflation rose. Practically, everything came to a halt. There were clear signs of restiveness in the polity.

    “It was therefore not surprising that one of the first things President Muhammadu Buhari did (after being sworn in), was to create an intervention fund through the instrumentality of the Council of State to enable the states pay up backlogs of salaries and pension arrears. There have been other interventions that have considerably eased tension in the polity.”

  • NLC accuses some states of diverting bailout loan

    NLC accuses some states of diverting bailout loan

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday alleged that some governors are diverting the bailout loan into fixed deposit accounts.

    Its president, Ayuba Wabba, who said this in an Independence Day message, added that the governors’ actions would be resisted.

    Wabba praised the National Council of State and President Muhammadu Buhari for their interventions, but lamented that the enthusiasm and commitment shown on the matter has been lacking in some states.

    He alleged that rather than pay salaries and pensions, some governors “have elected to play politics with workers’ welfare”.

    “We condemn this attitude and strongly warn that henceforth, any state that defaults in the regular payment of salaries and pensions will face the wrath of the workers.

    “Salaries and pensions are inalienable rights of workers and retirees and not privileges.

    “We also call for reforms at state and local government levels to enhance the security of pension funds and regular payments.

    “We want to caution the governors who have fixed the intervention funds in banks for pecuniary benefits. It is totally unacceptable.

    “The NLC is working with the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) to track the fixed funds and take appropriate action.

    “We urge the government  re-think how to fix the economy through robust macro-economic, civil, accountable and people-oriented policies capable of addressing our dependency syndrome.

    “We propose to government to, among other things, reduce the importation of luxury items or levy special tax on them, further eliminate corruption in the importation of refined petroleum products, ensure the country meets its consumption needs through enhanced local production.

    “We propose a strategy that ensures a balance between the productive and social sectors with a focus on economic diversification-cum-quality and robust housing programmes.

    “We urge the government to take other measures that could speed up the process of revitalisation, such as banning importation of finished textile products, resuscitate cotton farms, improve energy supply and give other incentives.”

  • ‘NLC not party to calls for Saraki’s resignation’

    ‘NLC not party to calls for Saraki’s resignation’

    The Nigeria Labour Congress said on Monday it was not party to calls for the resignation of the Senate President, Bukola Saraki.

    The body also called for an immediate investigation into death of Nigerian pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.

    NLC in a statement signed by its president, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, said it has never made any comment on the trial of the Senate President by the Code of Conduct Tribunal and has not made any call for his resignation.

    The statement reads “The attention of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has been drawn to the report on The Punch Newspaper of Sunday, September 27, 2015 captioned: “Resign now, labour unions tell Saraki.”

    “The report stated that “Nigerian workers, under the umbrellas of the Nigerian Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress, have asked the President of the Senate, Senator Bukola Saraki, to vacate his office pending the determination of his case at the Code of Conduct Tribunal.”

    “We wish to state categorically clear that the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) did not issue any statement to that effect.  As a matter of fact, Congress has never made such a demand and therefore dissociates itself from the statement. We therefore urge the general public and our members in particular to please take note.

    “The recent mass rally by NLC/TUC and civil society allies in Abuja was to support the anti-corruption crusade of the current administration as well as enthronement of good governance in the country. While Congress will continue to support the anti-graft war, it will however not support the removal of any public office holder without recourse to due process.

    “Labour values security of tenure unless there is a proven case of guilt which clearly is not yet the case with particular reference to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, whose controversial matter of alleged false declaration of assets is still in court. Congress as a democratic organization presumes all Nigerians, workers inclusive are innocent until they are proved guilty by the courts of law of the land.”

     

  • Why we want capital punishment for looters, by NLC

    Why we want capital punishment for looters, by NLC

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday insisted on capital punishment for corrupt public office holders.

    It opposed life imprisonment for treasury looters, saying the country was not ripe for it.

    NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, spoke with newsmen in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during a condolence visit to former vice president of the union, Issa Aremu, on the death of his mother, Hafsat.

    He said: “We must canvass for capital punishment. It is only people who are stealing that will go against it.

    “If we are campaigning for capital punishment and people are kicking against it, we must be consistent because people are reaping from where they have not sown.

    “Except we begin to do the needful, it will be difficult to change our society. If you have followed up our argument, we have said clearly that part of why we are in this quagmire of challenges is that a lot of people have appropriated the resources that we need to drive development.”

    Wabba went on: “Schools are not developing; there are no drugs in hospitals. People have helped themselves and Nigerians are suffering.

    “So we have the right to demand good governance and accountability. The major problem in Nigeria is corruption.”

    He said workers kicked against plea bargaining because “it will be an incentive to encourage treasury looters because the loot will be too much so that during the process of plea bargaining, they may just part with little.”

    On factionalisation within the union, he said the rift has been settled.

    He explained: “The disagreement has been settled by the grace of God. We have settled and we are pushing ahead with a very strong force that all of us are, workers, citizens of this country will be happy with and you have seen the action we took, the protest which was for good governance and against corruption.”