The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Union

  • Union draws battle line against casualisation

    The National Union of Shops and Distributive Employees (NUSDE) has said it is ready to re-ignite the battle against casualisation and contract staffing in the sector. It, therefore, warned employers engaging in the act to desist as it will fight the battle to a standstill.

    Its President, Comrade Innocent Jaja said casualisation and contract staffing have been a hard nut for organised labour to crack for over a decade.

    He said it is more pronounced due to the economic downturn confronting the country.

    Jaja said: “The challenges facing the sector are quite numerous. But let me start with the economy, which is like the father of them all. Our economy, if you ask me, is in coma, even though the Federal Government said we are out of recession. But like my immediate past president always said, how does that affect us? How does that put food on the table of an average Nigerian? Our economy is that bad, and if the head is sick then the entire body is sick.”

    He said the most catastrophic is the issue of power, lamenting that the cost of running generators for a day in any establishment would tell if the economy is right or not. “If a man, for instance, has 50 workers, and has a business that he earns N100,000 as profit daily, that is fairly what is required for diesel to run generators for the business.

     

    Of course, workers are part of the larger part of the society. We are the worst hit because there is hardly any a week or month that we do not discuss the issue of downsizing with our employers arising from hardship.

    “We are into retailing, if an employer requires five loads of diesel a day to run a shop, do that by one month, including other variable cost, the man cannot break even and that is why we are having all these issues, it is that bad and we pray, by his grace, we will not go into extinction.”

  • Union pickets NASENI over EVC’s tenure

    The crisis over the proposed renewal of the appointment of a former Executive Vice Chairman for National Agency for Science and Engineering Infrastructure (NASENI), Prof. Mohammed Haruna deepened yesterday with some officials of the Academic Staff Union of Research Institutes (ASURI) picketing the agency.

    But workers of the agency declined to join the protest against Haruna.

    The workers said they won’t allow sponsored third forces to cripple the agency when the Presidency was already looking into a request for the appointment of a substantive EVC.

    The NASENI staff insisted on the renewal of the tenure of Prof. Haruna.

    Minister of Science and Technology Ogbonnaya Onu, has recommended the renewal of the tenure of the EVC but some ASURI officials led by National Secretary Comrade Theo Ndubaku staged a protest. The ASURI officials met with NASENI Director of Administration Mr. A. K. Hassan and presented their grievances on why the appointment of Prof. Haruna should not be renewed.

    Their demands were the same as contained in a previous letter to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Mustapha on April 22.

    They said: “The Academic Staff Union of Research Institutions (ASURJ) has resolved never to condone any further acts of impunity from Professor M. S. Haruna which rubbishes the integrity of President Muhammadu Buhari who is the Chairman of the Board of National Agency for Science and Engineering infrastructure (NASENI) and the exalted office of the SGF.”

    Some Concerned employees of NASENI who opposed the strike in a statement in Abuja, said: “We watch with dismay the insincerity and hate being implored by some masked forces within and outside NASENI to thwart and blackmail the Excellent efforts of the Executive Vice Chairman/ Chief Executive of NASENI, by pretending to hide under expiration of tenure.

    “NASENI established Twenty Six (26) years ago had operated in a one-storey structure without enough office and facilities to perform its mandate until Prof. M. S. Haruna stepped in five (5) years ago.

    “The huge turnaround of NASENI and its institutes has brought NASENI to a new limelight and envy among other Parastatals.

    “The most sensible thing to do is to advocate for continuity of leadership so that total success of the ongoing works and projects for the Science and Technology drive of the Nation would become a Mission accomplished.

    “It is unfortunate that some enemies of progress masquerading under staff union are not happy with the achievements of Prof. M. S. Haruna hence, desire to disrupt the peace and harmony of the Agency by calling for tenure expiration.

    The transformation of NASENI in the last five (5) years are visible including:  conversion of Directors to Managing Directors at the Institutes to pave the  way for elongation of staff cadre ; reflection of Federal character in employment as against the former lopsided ness; new creativities and innovations in Research and Developments; staff trainings both local and international; new  emerging office Complexes at the headquarters; enhanced timely staff promotions and payment of many years of unpaid staff entitlements

    “NASENI is not for sale and not for a particular region but for a focus and articulated leader, whose  orientation is for the overall development of the Nation.

    “We say no to sponsored protest by some Third forces (Let them point to a fault in the five years first tenure of Prof. M. S Haruna).

    “We are calling on the Minister of Science and Technology Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu to wade in to allow  Prof. M. S. Haruna accomplish the good works he has started, by giving him the support/chance for the Second (2nd) tenure in the spirit of Justice and Fairness.

  • Union issues ultimatum

    The Medical and Health Workers’ Union (NHWU), has given the government a 30-day ultimatum to address its demands.

    The ultimatum began last weekend.

    Its National President, Comrade Joy Josiah, said the union agreed at a meeting at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), Idi-Araba, Lagos, that their request  for improved pay and payment of some over due allowances should be met as it was done for their counterparts in the core medical unit.

    Speaking  with reporters, Josiah recalled that the battle to get the government to accede to the union’s  demand dated back to 2014.

    According to Josiah, the union has exercised enough patience and empathy for the public, who will be at the receiving end of the strike, which it said, would be total and indefinite at the expiration of the 30-day ultimatum, which started at the weekend.

    Josiah wondered why the government would accede to the demands of their colleagues of the core medicines within 15 days of strike warnings while those of the MHWU had lasted over five months without any attention from the same government.

    He lamented the widening of the pay gap between doctors and MHWU members, who give associated health services, describing it as unjustifiable.

    “The entry point for doctors used to be Level 9 while ours has been Level 8. Three years and you are expected to move to Level 9 while they moved to 10. So, it has always been one level or three years difference until the government made doctors starting point Level 12, which now translates to a gap of three levels and nine years.

    “Yet the medical doctors are already threatening that if government should raise our own relativity earnings, theirs too must be increased to widen the gap the more.”

     

    “This is grossly unfair to us and it is a product of unnecessary ego. But why should that be?,”he wondered.

  • Union: replace Delta’s retiring teachers

    The leadership of Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) in Delta State has expressed concern at the high turnover of retirees in primary and secondary schools since last year.

    State NUT Chairman Titus Okotie, who spoke in Asaba, said over 3,000 teachers retired from the service last year, adding that with another 1,500 retiring this year, the future looked bleak.

    He urged the government to intervene, to avert falling standard of education.

    Okotie said the government lacked the resources to recruit teachers, adding that it must convene a stakeholders’ meeting to adopt a framework to provide manpower for schools.

    Said he: “With about 17,000 teaching staff in primary schools and an estimated 12,000 in secondary schools, our fear is that with the figure that retired in 2017 and those likely to retire this year, our classroom may become empty if something urgent is not done.”

    The NUJ chairman said the government must take a look at decisions reached during the 2015 Education Summit.

  • Union urges Ambode on 33% pension short-payment

    The Lagos State Council of the Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) has called on Governor Akinwumi Ambode to come to its aid by finding solution to the 25 per cent short-payment and the 33 per cent pension increase.

    Its Chairman, Elder Oluremi Johnson, who spoke with The Nation at the council’s office in Lagos, lamented that some pensioners had problem with the 25 per cent short-payment.

    He added that pension should also be harmonised to enable pensioners who retired on the same rank to be paid the same or similar pension, be it after 30 years of retirement or a year.

    He called on the government to avail the Lagos NUP office of accommodation, noting that this should be in the Central Business District (CBD), preferably Alausa, Ikeja. He regretted that it is only Lagos NUP that does not have its own office, which is why it iss operating from a rented apartment.

    “We are also requesting for utility vehicle, which would enable us carry out official assignments and attend meetings with ease,” Johnson said.

    He further appealed that the welfare packages given to pensioners by the government should be monetised, adding that this would help to prevent the stress experienced by pensioners to get the packages.

     

     

  • Review tariff on alcohol, tobacco, union urges govt

    • Says 2,000 jobs lost in two years

    The Food, Beverage and Tobacco Senior Staff Association (FOBTOB) has urged the Federal Government to re-evaluate the recommendation to raise tariff on alcohol and tobacco to prevent job losses.

    FOBTOB General Secretary Mr Iji Solomon made the call when he spoke to reporters.

    Finance Minister Mrs Kemi Adeosun had recommended an increased tariff on alcohol and tobacco because of their health implications and to raise revenue.

    According to Solomon, the recommendation to raise tariff on the products could affect their manufacturers and lead to redundancy.

    “There is no doubt that the minister proposed the increase based on ECOWAS Common External Tariff, but it should not be at the detriment of local manufacturers or the economy,” he said.

    The union’s scribe said the price disparity for each of the products by the minister was not understandable but that any increase would impact on the workforce.

    He said the “Ad valorem” tariff (Value Tax) was a normal tariff on products in the industry but it could increase the unit tax of tobacco.

    According to Solomon,  about 2,000 workers have lost their jobs in the last two years because of the closure of companies and economic indices.

    He said the only tobacco company in Nigeria needed incentives while distilleries should be encouraged to employ more workers rather than sack them.

    “Many distilleries closed business because they can no longer access foreign raw materials for  production. Only a few are working and any increase will lead to redundancy.

    “Since the distiller companies use local materials, increase in tariff can lead to their collapse. Secondly, with an increased tariff, the distillers will be unable to compete with imported ones,” he said.

    Solomon urged the government to collaborate with industry stakeholders such as Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employees and Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) on the issue.

  • Union urges Umuezeukwu indigenes to develop community

    The Chairman of the Lagos State chapter of Umuezeukwu Progressive Union, Elder Ebere Adieze, has urged sons and daughters of the community in the Diaspora to develop of the community.

    Adieze addressed reporters yesterday in Lagos ahead of this year’s annual Umuezeukwu Re-union, called “Picking of Kola Nut” at FESTAC Town in Lagos.

    The community leader noted that building Umuezeukwu community at Nsulu in Isiala-Ngwa North Local Government Area of Abia State rested on the indigenes.

    He said no outsider would be more interested in developing the community than “you, the sons and daughters”.

    Also, Chairman and Secretary of the Planning Committee, Mazi Nnamdi Brown Ubani and Ibeneme Obinna, urged Umuezeukwu indigenes in and around Lagos to attend tomorrow’s meeting.

  • Union urges IGP to probe shooting of students in Ibadan

    Union urges IGP to probe shooting of students in Ibadan

    •Normalcy returns to college

    The Chairman of Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) at the Institute of Agricultural Research and Training (IAR&T) in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, Mr. Emmanuel Olufemi Oladehinde, has condemned police shooting of students of Federal College of Agriculture at Moor Plantation in Ibadan on Monday.

    A student of the college and two other persons sustained bullet-wound injuries during the shooting.

    But normalcy has returned to the college.

    Oladehinde urged the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Ibrahim Idris, to probe the incident.

    The union leader regretted that innocent workers of another institution were hit by the bullets, saying it was inhuman for the police to use live bullets on harmless students.

    He said the police had a better option to reprimand the protesting students, instead of shooting live bullets at them.

    Oladehinde recalled that overzealous policemen, led by a Divisional Police Officer (DPO), allegedly ordered his arrest and four other workers of the institution, who he said were brutalised by the police while mediating.

    He said: “I was on the spot. What really happened was that the students were staging a peaceful demonstration, though they blocked the road. The policemen were there. Suddenly, the police started shooting. So, the students came inside the institute. The police said they could not differentiate the workers from the students.

    “So, they started firing their guns and teargas at everybody on sight. I was even arrested after I was harassed. I went to the Diviosional Police Officer (DPO) and showed him my identity as the NASU chairman of the institute. Those arrested were workers of IAR&T. The DPO said I should be arrested too.

    “I was arrested and they collected my wallet. But later, they returned my wallet to me. The police even stoned me. Four of our workers were brutalised and detained. We went to the station to release them. It was the Area Commander that gave them the order that they should release our people. So, they were released.

    “We took them to the hospital, and they have been discharged. But those who were shoot are still at the University College Hospital (UCH) now. The information we got was that they are about to wheel the woman that was shoot in the abdomen to the theatre.

    “So, the second person, who was shot on the leg, is also there. That is the situation we found ourselves.”

     

     

  • Union launches website

    Private Telecommunication and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria  (PTECSSAN)  has inaugurated a website to bridge communication gap between the union and its members.

    At the inauguration, its President, Oladapo  Sunday Moses , said workers in the sector are scattered within and outside the nation, handling projects aimed at making communication easier for Nigerians.

    “We felt the need to make reaching us a lot easier. We launch the website to bridge communication gap between PTECSSAN and its members (existing and new). Majority of companies in our jurisdiction are multi-nationals,” he said.

    The world, according to him, has become a global village where one can reach any person anywhere at the same time, adding that for the first time in the history of Nigeria, they have a registered trade union in the private telecommunications’ and communication’s sector.

    He said: “Forty-eight hours after the launch of the website, we have had over 20,000 mention on Twitter, site traffic, which can be monitored even right on the site, and it showed tremendous visit from Europe, America, Asia and others. We have more inquiries now than before even from places and companies we never knew existed in our sector.

    “The site is not close or peculiar to our targeted audience only, in few days, researchers looking into the history and origin of labour and workers’ right will have our website as a valuable tool for a good result. Our team of experts are looking into the history of the civil service union right from the 1900, the world over and Nigeria in particular. Also, the website will be a good link as our news page will beam live and updated news around the world and in Nigeria.

    “Virtually all news feeds will be accessible via our channel. When we say news we mean serious news about important and necessary happenings.“

    Secretary-General of Nigeria Union of Railway Workers (NUR),  Comrade Segun Esan urged all unions to patronise the telecommunications’ union on ICT issues in other to  champion the affairs of labour movement.

    National President of United Labour Congress, (ULC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, commended PTECSSAN  for the achievement The General Secretary of PTECSSAN, Comrade Abdullahi Okonu  said the reasons behind the website  is  to project the image of the union to the world and to reach out to its current members and the prospective ones.

  • Poor budgetary allocation affects Nigeria’s technological development, says union

    The National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) has expressed displeasure over low budgetary allocation to the education sector, which has consistently fallen below the UNESCO benchmark of 26 per cent.

    The union blamed low allocation to the sector for the failure of any Nigerian university being ranked among the first 500 in the world.

    The union, in a communiqué at the end of its National Executive Council (NEC) meeting, therefore, urged the federal and state governments to give priority to budgetary allocation to the education sector.

    In the communiqué by NAAT General Secretary, Comrade Hamilton Iyoyo, the union said across the world, countries are budgeting hugely to improve their technological sector, stressing that Nigeria cannot afford to be left behind.

    The union’s NEC also urged the government to honour and implement agreements reached with unions to forestall unquantifiable losses in man-hours, negative impact on the economy, and other losses occasioned by incessant strike actions.