The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Trade Union

  • ‘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.

     

  • Bid to stop tricycle owners registration as trade union fails

    The National Industrial Court of Nigeria has dismissed a suit  by the Incorporated Trustees of Tricycle Owners and Operators Association of Nigeria (ITTOOAN) challening the registration of Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria (TOAN) as a trade union.

    Justice Elizabeth Oji dismissed the case for “ lacking in merit”.

    The ITTOOAN, which is the first claimant in the suit numbered NICN/LA/504/2016, had through its counsel, Gbade Olajide, sued TOAN and others.

    Among other reliefs, it prayed for an order to cancel TOAN’s registration as a trade union.

    Comrade Joseph Odusanya, Alhaji Ganiyu Dauda and Alhaji Shakirudeen Arowoye are the other claimants.

    The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Minister for Labour and Employment, Registrar of Trade Unions, Tricycle Owners Association of Nigeria, Comrade Agustine Apeh, Mr. Babatunde Ayenogun, Attorney-General of Lagos State and the Commissioner for Transport are the defendants.

    The claimants prayed the court to declare that the registration of TOAN by the Registrar of Trade Union despite being aware of the existence of ITTOOAN constitutes an usurpation of ITTOOAN’s authority and power and was likely to cause disharmony and delusion amongst its members.

    The claimants prayed the court to declare that registration of the 4th defendant is improper and fraudulent and contravened the provisions of Section 7(1)(a) of the Trade Union Act.

    Furthermore, the claimants prayed the court to declare that the TOAN is the proper and only authorised association to collect levies, rates, and dues from all tricycle operators and owners in Nigeria.

    They also sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining the fifth and 6th defendants from parading themselves as Executives of the 1st defendant and from collecting levies, rates, dues from tricycle operators or owners.

    The fourth to sixth defendants through their counsel, Femi Aborisade and Mark Nosa Imonitie, contended that TOAN defendant was not registered with the intention clandestinely to operate as the first claimant’s association, adding that the prescribed procedure for registration of Trade Unions was observed before the fourth defendant was registered and issued a Certificate of Registration duly signed by the Registrar of Trade Union on January 26, 2016.

    They contended that ITTOOAN, not being a registered trade union, is not entitled to collect any dues or levies from members of TOAN.

    They added that TOAN had only been collecting dues, levies or proceeds from sale of tickets from tricycle owners and operators who willingly joined it, without coercion.

    According to the defendants, the application to register the TOAN as a trade union was undertaken when they learnt that a body registered under Part C of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) could not engage in profit making and profit sharing activities or operate as a trade union.

    They submitted that TOAN’s registration was not obtained by fraud and that it was not a faction of ITTOOAN.

    The defendants, however, claimed that ITTOOAN, being an association registered under Part C of CAMA, and the second to fourth claimants who are officers ITTOOAN lack the requisite locus standi to institute the suit.

    It is on the ground that claimants were not ‘person’ as contemplated by Section 6(6)(b) of the 1999 Constitution as amended.

    In his her verdict, Justice Oji held that by the provision of Section 254C of the 1999 Constitution, parties before the court must be persons deriving rights as listed and as constituting the jurisdiction of the court.

    “Claimants derive their status under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, which this court has not been vested with jurisdiction to implement; unless as persons created by the Act but deriving rights and obligations as may have been determined by the Constitution (particularly Section 245C or any Act of the National Assembly,” she held.

    Justice Oji held that the claimants ought to have challenged the registration of the TOAN before the Registrar of Trade Unions, before coming to court, but failed to do so as there was no evidence before the court that such step was taken by the claimants.

    “This suit is, therefore, premature and this court lacks jurisdiction to entertain this suit. I therefore hold that this Court does not have jurisdiction to hear this suit.

    “In the circumstances of findings made in this suit, this suit is liable to be dismissed, and is hereby dismissed. I make no order as to cost,” Justice Oji held.

  • NLC, TUC alert Fed Govt to new trade union

    NLC, TUC alert Fed Govt to new trade union

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) have alerted  the Federal Government to the existence of a new labour union.

    Their letter dated January 19,  was signed by the NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba and his TUC counterpart, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama.

    Titled: Need to avert anarchy in the industrial relations system in the country: Mushroom/Shell trade unions and addressed to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, the two leaders  said they were constrained to bring the issue to the minister’s attention because of the damage the new union could cause to the labour movement.

    They said the new union’s  leaders, after failing in their bid to lead the NLC, following the successful conduct of the rescheduled election at the 10th delegates’ conference of the congress last March, set up the union.

    The letter reads in part: “Some of our colleagues have been making concerted efforts to destabilise the industrial relations space in the country. This started with the effort to fractionalise the NLC, which failed after almost two years of trying. In their desperation, they have now purported to float a new trade union centre with the name United Labour Congress of Nigeria. In the last couple of months, they have collected forms for the registration of dozens of some trade unions without membership.’’

    It said all the unions being wooed by the splinter faction are  adequately covered by existing unions.

    “One expects that people who operate at our level will know the relevant provisions of the Trade Union Act, but perhaps we are assuming too much. The Trade Union Act CAP T14, LFN, 2004, Section 3(2) provides thus: “But no trade union shall be registered to represent workers or employers in a place where there already exist a trade union,” the letter said.

  • Why we formed new trade union, by NLC faction

    The Comrade Joe Ajaero-led faction of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) at the weekend explained why it cut ties with the union and formed a new trade union, United Labour Congress (ULC).

    Ajaero, the General Secretary of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), was elected  ULC’s maiden president at its inaugural delegates’ conference in Lagos.

    He said ULC would “restore hope to workers, the oppressed, the victimised, the neglected and other relegated members of the society, who have been left to wallow in hardship, sufferings and frustration”.

    Ajaero added: “All cadres of workers: junior, mid-level, senior, are all here. They tried to divide us but we are united. This movement cannot be stopped. The more they persecute us, the stronger we are. We’ll bridge the gap between private and public sector workers.

    “We are calling on the National Assembly to review all policies that are not beneficial to workers. When people are idle, it heralds different social vices. We promise to serve the people.”

    Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) President Igwe Achese was elected ULC’s deputy president.

    The erstwhile factional NLC president had been involved in a disagreement with Comrade Ayuba Wabba on who was the legitimate NLC president.

    The ULC, comprising 25 industrial unions from the NLC, Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) and others without affiliation to either NLC or TUC, also elected three vice presidents, a treasurer, auditors, financial secretary, among others, to run its affairs.

    Leaders of the new group said their first major outing would be an onslaught against a leading airline on December 20 for alleged unfair labour practices.

  • NLC, NASS, govt meet over reversal of electricity tariff

    NLC, NASS, govt meet over reversal of electricity tariff

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) Wednesday assured Nigerians that organised labour has commenced the process of compelling the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission and operators of the nation’s power sector to reverse the recent increase in electricity tariff.

    President of the Congress, Comrade Ayuba Wabba said in a statement made available to The Nation in Abuja that organised Labour held series of meetings with the leadership of the National Assembly and the Government with a view to effecting the tariff reversal.

    He expressed gratitude to Nigerians for turning out enmass across the country to protest the increase in tariff, pointing out that organised labour still believe that Nigerians should not be made to pay for the inefficiencies of operators of the power sector.

    The statement reads:”The leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress and our colleagues in the Trade Union Congress wish to express our profound appreciation and gratitude to Nigerian workers and people for coming out en mass across the country on the nationwide protest rally we called to voice our opposition to the 45 percent increase in electricity tariff which came into effect on February 1, 2016.

    “We wish to, in particular, commend our civil society allies who stood firmly with organised labour through the planning and execution of the February 8th rally. We thank Nigerians from all walks of life who saw the wisdom of our action and identified with the campaign.

    “Since the nationwide rally, the leadership of organised labour and our colleagues in civil society have been meeting with the leadership of the National Assembly, with the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, being present to underscore the importance they attach to this issue which affects every household in the country.

    “We are also having a meeting with the Federal Government under the Chairmanship of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir David Lawal, Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige with a view to annulling the 45 percent tariff increase.

    “We wish to assure all Nigerians that we are focused on the main objective of our campaign to ensure that the tariff increase does not stand.

    “As we have argued in the course of the rally, we maintain that Nigerians should not be compelled to pay more for darkness, against the background of the flagrant disregard of the terms on which the distribution companies (DISCOs) and generation companies (GENCOs) were awarded our common patrimony in the name of privatisation.

    These companies have failed, for instance, to provide prepaid metres as stipulated in the terms of their contract. They have instead continued to violate this special clause by charging and forcing consumers to pay the arbitrary tariffs they have imposed, even as they fail most of the time to provide them the required electricity.”

    NLC President commended the governor for having the courage to reverse his action and recall the about 6000 workers wrongly sacked and expressed the hope that the committee set up to implement the agreement reached between labour and the government will faithfully carry out its assignment.

    He said: “The leadership of both NLC and TUC also wish to express appreciation to all affiliate industrial unions for mobilising their members to turn out in massive numbers for our action of closing down government and commercial activities in Owerri, the lmo State capital on February 10, 2016 to press home our demands for the recall of about 6000 lmo State workers in government parastatals wrongly sacked by the state governor, Rochas Okorocha.

    “While we thank the entire people of Imo State for their uncommon understanding and solidarity with our actions to protect the fundamental rights of workers in the state, we wish to acknowledge Governor Okorocha for having the courage to reverse himself once we convinced him that his action was unlawful and wrongheaded.

    “It is our hope that the committee put in place to implement the agreement entered into between us and the lmo State government will faithfully implement the terms of the agreement so that we could put behind us the ugly and unpleasant situation created by the purported sacking of the workers.

    “Our hope is that governments in other states, or even at the federal level, will learn from the lmo State case, to avoid creating situations that will bring organised labour to be at loggerheads with them on account of unjust and anti-worker policies.”

  • Photo: Trade union congress holds conference

    Photo: Trade union congress holds conference

  • Unpaid salaries: Take political sentiments out – Group warns

    A group of professionals under the aegis of the Progressive Communication and Strategy Think-Tank (PCSTT) on Sunday cautioned politicians against what it described as a “growing politicisation” of the ongoing problem of the unpaid salaries across the country.

    The group called the attention of the Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress and other affiliated bodies to critically examine the condemnable degrees to which the very crucial problem of workers’ salaries in many states of the federation and under the Federal Government is being gradually turned to tool in the hands of politicians to score political points against one another.

    The PCSTT, after its meeting in Abuja at the weekend, said it reviewed the ongoing problems of revenue crisis in Nigeria especially as it affects the welfare of workers.

    In its release signed on behalf of the group by the Administrative Secretary, Mr. Adewale Adegoke, the Think-Tank group said workers must view with disdain and warn politicians not to turn their fate to tools of political brinksmanship.

    “We have in the last few weeks followed with keen interest and utmost attention the painful inabilities of many states of the federation to meet their obligations to their workers. While we recognise the efforts being made by the concerned states to clear the unpaid salaries, we are however miffed by an unsavoury development as politicians now see the development as a tool to play dirty politics.

    “The salary crisis, we believe, is one development that must wake us up from our inertia to fully understand the import of the faulty federation we run; the size and character of our bureaucracies and the urgent need to juxtapose what we earn and what we pay as remunerations vis-a-vis national productivity index,” the group stated

    The group also called the attention of workers across the federation to resist attempts to use their welfare and fate by politicians to score cheap points by embarking on propaganda against one another.

    “The interest of workers is beyond the political ambitions and interests of individuals and groups. This is why workers must stand up to condemn anyone found playing politics with this serious issue.

    “A politician who is genuinely interested in lasting solutions to the problem would not wait till he gets to power or use the plight of workers as bargaining tool to win supports. He should go straight to proffer solutions to end the hardship created by the unpaid salaries,” the PCSTT said.

    The group also called on the Federal Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari to accelerate its processes towards resolving the logjam adding that “the government cannot afford to allow the problem to get out of control with its attendant humanitarian complexities before it rises to the occasion”

    “We are confident to say that failure to take decisive actions by the Federal Government at this critical stage will provide rooms for more politicians to see the development as something to play dangerous politics with. This is a purely and national economic issue which must not be toyed with as it has the capacity to throw Nigeria into crisis of unimaginable proportion,” the group concluded.

  • Pension Act denies federal staff of gratuity, EX-TUC boss alleges

    THE implementation of the 2004 Pension Act is denying federal civil servants their gratuities, a former Trade Union Congress (TUC) President, Comrade Peace Obiajulu, has alleged.

    She spoke with reporters yesterday at the fitness training exercise of the Trustfund Pension Plc at Abuja.

    The implementation of the Act, she stated, is at variance with the provision.

    She recalled that upon the enactment of the new Pension Act, former President Olusegun Obasanjo insisted that workers should still earn gratuity alongside their pension entitlement.

    Obiajulu, who compared the old with the new pension schemes, said: “In comparison, it is better but there is room for improvement.

    “Some organisations, especially Federal Government now use it to steal the workers’ gratuity because workers are no more being paid gratuity in Federal Ministries.”

    Calling for improvement in the implementation of the new scheme, the ex- TUC boss said although the Pension Act makes provisions for payment of pension, the Pension Fund custodians now prefer paying 25% and spreading the balance for life.

    She lamented that those who knew her as an advocate of the new Pension law complain the implementation is different from what they battled for.

    Obiajulu, however, said nobody has complained about the operation of the Trustfund Pension Plc to her.

    Former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Productivity, Dr. Timiebi Koripamo-Agari, noted that the Act has improved on the payment of pension.

    She admitted that although there are few challenges in the implementation, the Pension Scheme is better than it was.

    “Whether the amount is enough is a different matter but in terms of payment, the pensioners now receive their payment,”  Koripamo-Agari stressed.

    The Managing Director, Trustfund Pension Administration, Mrs. Helen Dasouza, revealed that the firm is about boosting of about 600,000 customers nationwide.

    Announcing the organisation’s target for 2014, she said: “We said that by the end of the year we should be 650,000 registrations.”

    She said that the Trust fund mobile solution vehicle has been of tremendous progress in terms of registration of new customers.