The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Unions

  • Unions demand enforcement of statutory retirement age for CMDs

    Unions demand enforcement of statutory retirement age for CMDs

    The Nigeria Medical Association (NMA) and other health unions have urged the Federal Government to enforce the public service rule on the tenure of Chief Medical Directors and Medical Directors in the nations’ tertiary hospitals.

    The unions told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Lagos that government could avert unnecessary unrest in the health institutions by ensuring due process in its appointment.

    The NMA made available to NAN a circular from the Head of Civil Service dated July 27, 2009, signed by Mr. Stephen Orosanye to make good its claim as to why the enforcement was necessary.

    The circular reads: “Interpretation of Public Service Rules on Compulsory Retirement Age/Year of Service in Relation to Appointment of Serving Public Officers.

    “The attention of the Federal Government has been drawn to the need to correct the interpretation of the public career officers who are serving as Executive Directors or Directors-General.

    “Others are Chief Executive of parastatals, agencies and government-owned companies.

    “For avoidance of doubt and in other to maintain discipline and integrity of the public service rules which prescribe 60 years of age or 35 years of service for mandatory retirement should be strictly complied with according to the following guidelines shall apply.

    “That career officers who wish to take up tenured appointments should at the point of taking up the appointment, retire from service to ensure they run their term uninterrupted.

    “That career officers who may have not retired or choose not to retire from service, before the commencement of their tenured appointment, must leave office on attainment of the mandatory age/year of service for retirement.

    “That career officers who are currently holding tenured appointments are required to retire from the service with immediate effect and continue to run their term.

    “Failure to do so would mean that they will vacate office on attaining the mandatory retirement age or at the expiration of their term whichever comes first.

    “The content of this circular should be brought to the notice of all concerned for strict compliance and uniform application in all federal parastatals and agencies.”

    Commenting, Dr Tope Ojo, Chairman, NMA, Lagos branch, said that the law was clear on the situation and that there was no ambiguity in the position of the association.

    “What we have here in the civil service policy and Orosanye’s report is clear.

    “We have written to the Ministry of Health (MOH) on what the law says; it is up to them to implement.

    “Dr Rahaman Lawal, Medical Director of Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, was removed based on this law, others should follow.

    “The Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) is not the only one left, we have about 10 others.

    “The Medical Director, Psychiatric Hospital, Yaba, was removed because there was a massive protest which involved all cadres of workers, doctors inclusive, on why the law should not be applied across board,’’ he said.

    Also, the General Secretary, Nigeria Union of Allied Professional (NUHAP), Dr Obisesan Oluwatuyi, said the position of the law was clear on the tenure of hospital CMDs.

    “It is clearly stated in the appointment of CMDs that once you are up to or close to 60 years you are not eligible, but they got the appointment because of corruption.

    “Even on the basis of coming in to head the teaching hospital as a professor, on 65 years obtainable in universities which most of the CMDs claim is untenable.

    “Until we agree that universities are autonomous of teaching hospitals, the law that set up the universities is different from the law that set up teaching hospitals, it would continue.

    “In 1981 Onosode panel report was very clear that the university lecturers should not be appointed to head teaching hospitals.

    “Such a document was jettisoned, so, importing what is obtainable in universities to teaching hospital is not justifiable,’’ he said.

    “The reason why they were able to contest for CMD’s position is that they were appointed as honorary consultants in the hospital which is an ad-hoc appointment not a permanent position.

    “They were employed to carry out clinical duties in the hospital and not for administrative duty, yet they were able to infiltrate into the system to get what they want.’’

    For Mr. Kehinde Adegoke, an Ex-Officio member and former Chairman, SSAUTHRIAI, LUTH, the position of the union is not borne out of malice.

    “We don’t have any interest in whoever becomes the CMD, what we swore to protect is the application of the rule of law, obedience to the rule of service and avoiding bad precedence.

    “We have had a situation whereby the former Head of Service of the Federation, Prof. Oladapo Afolabi, stepped down on the attainment of the statutory retirement age of 60 years.

    “Some of the CMDs in our teaching hospital are overstaying in office as against the stipulated age requirement and this is not good for a place known for integrity.

    “The CMD is in the cadre of a director and directors come under a permanent secretary; the condition for the director is stipulated in public service rule 020810 section iv,’’ he said.

    Adegoke said the teaching hospitals had in abundance qualified personnel to fit in the position of CMD for which there was no reason for someone staying in the office arbitrarily.

    “Sometimes, because these CMDs came in through the back door, they tend to exhibit high handedness and who will benefit from their lawlessness?

    “We have a case of Prof. Eugene Okpere of University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) that followed due process and retired upon the statutory age.

    “There should not be a double standard in this regard,’’ he said.

    Adegoke maintained that there had been some commission in the past that were asked to look into the matter, but their recommendations never saw the light of the day, maybe due to underhand factors.

    “If Academic Union (ASUU) is clamouring for 65 years, that is for teaching in universities and not administrative echelon at the teaching hospitals.

    “What they fought for and granted was a 70-year extension for professors to retire and if they did not become professors before 65, they retire same year.

    “What we have in LUTH, Neuro-Psychiatric, Yaba, FMC Ebute Meta and National Orthopaedic Igbobi and other hospitals under MOH is that they don’t have a professor in their cadre.

    “Teaching hospital never had the position of professor in its cadre of service and the health did not have provision for such,’’ he said.

    Adegoke said that LUTH had about 350 consultants with about 200 out of them qualified to be CMD, and this same situation is obtained at Owerri.

    “Most of the professors are jostling for the position because the position looks lucrative and as such, they will do anything to get it.

    “I want the head of service of the federation to intervene in this matter and protect the integrity of public service rule being decimated by the CMDs,’’ he said.

    The Minister of Health, Prof Isaac Adewole, said that the issue of the tenure of appointment of the CMD was a case before the ministry.

    “It is a challenge we inherited, when we are able to take decision on it, we will come out with a policy that will address the matter in a comprehensive manner.

    “We don’t want to address the matter on ad-hoc basis, the matter is quite receiving attention in the ministry and feedback will be given in the first week of January next year,’’ he said.

    The Permanent Secretary (Appointments), Federal Ministry of Health, Dr Amina-Bello Shamaki, said the administration being new would address the matter in its urgency.

    “You know we are just coming in, we have set up a committee to look into that and the report is supposed to be presented to us at the first meeting in January.

    “I will not be able to say something comprehensive on it for now, but we are looking at it,’’ she said.

  • UNIUYO VC seeks ties with unions, students

    UNIUYO VC seeks ties with unions, students

    The new Vice Chancellor (VC) of the University of Uyo (UNIUYO), Akwa Ibom State, Prof Enefiok Essien, has assured members of the academic community of greater development during his tenure, noting that such can be achieved in an atmosphere devoid of rancour.

    Speaking at a party organised to usher him in as the fifth VC of the institution and send off for his predecessor, Prof Comfort Ekpo, at the Onyema Ogochukwu Hall, Essien also assured all unions on campus of better welfare.

    Pledging to take the institution to greater heights among the comity of world universities, the Professor of Commercial Law, craved for a peaceful environment to thrive.

    “During my administration, the university cannot go down.  Workers’ welfare will be key,” he said, and enjoined the various unions to pursue their legitimate dues within the ambit of the law through dialogue.

    Essien, who pledged to run a transparent system, however, said the university management would only be amenable to genuine demands, and would not be cowed into implementing demands that were not part of the original welfare arrangement for workers of the institution.

    Chairman of the occasion, Prof Etim Essien, who acknowledged the development strides achieved by Prof Ekpo, urged the university community to work with the new VC to sustain the tempo of development.

    The Registrar, Mrs Edak Umondak, was also full of praise for Ekpo who entrenched academic excellence and improved the school’s infrastructure.

    Responding, Mrs Ekpo, a Professor of Educational Technology, thanked all stakeholders for rallying round her to achieve the goal of making the institution a centre for teaching, research and manpower development.

    Represented by her husband, Prof Memfin Ekpo, the former Vice Chancellor, tasked her successor to consolidate on her achievements and appealed for closer working relationship with stakeholders.

     

  • Unions flay Virgin over sack of Nigerian crew

    Unions flay Virgin over sack of Nigerian crew

    ABOUT three weeks after British carrier Virgin Atlantic Airways sacked 20 Nigerian cabin crew members, aviation unions threatened yesterday to stop the airline from operating into the country.

    The Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) and the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) at the weekend called on the Ministry of Aviation to intervene in the matter, describing the action as racist.

    The unions said they decided to condemn the action of the airline’s management, which, they said, had no recourse to known international labour or aviation practices and standards.

    A statement issued by Saint Omotaje and Olayinka Abioye on behalf of ATSSSAN and NUATE said: “We have studied the situation and have decided to call on the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Transportation and aviation agencies to intervene in this act of racism before it gets out of hand.

    “It is now obvious that Virgin Atlantic does not have a workable conditions of service for its employees. Even where it exist, it discriminate against the Black race (Nigerians) aboard their airplane and yet they will not want to leave the Lagos-UK route for those that love us, Nigerians.”

    The unions warned that aviation workers would mobilised through their various unions, associations and international affiliates in the coming days to seek the reversal of the action.

    “We believe that Virgin Atlantic must respect their Community Social Responsibility (CSR) obligation owed Nigerians. If they cannot use our crew in their airline, then they have no business flying into or from our country where they make a lot of money,” the unions said.

    Last week , Nigerian cabin crew members of the Virgin Atlantic Airways called on the Federal Government  to come to their aid over alleged racial bias by the airline.

    The cabin crew, through their lawyer, Chief Felix Fagbohungbe, SAN, wrote a letter protesting the planned termination of their jobs by the end of this month.

    Reacting to the protest, the airline’s sales agent in Nigeria, Chief John Adebanjo, dismissed insinuations that the airline was planning to pull out of the country due to harsh operating environment.

  • Labour seeks death sentence for corrupt public officers

    Labour seeks death sentence for corrupt public officers

    Organised Labour unions have demanded for capital punishment for corrupt public officers in the country.
    President of the Nigerian Labour Congress ( NLC) Comrade Ayuba Wabba made the call on Thursday during a march against corruption by labour and civil society groups in Abuja.
    “We are demanding that the penalty of corrupt public officer should be made very strict, including capital punishment. If has worked elsewhere and there is no reason why it should not work here. Therefore, all of us are here to try to present our position,” Wabba stated.
    ” We are here because our laws are very weak. Corrupt officials, even if he steals N 100 billion, at worst, he get two years jail term or part with a fraction of the money and you are allowed to go and enjoy your ill gotten wealth. The one that comes to mind is the case of Atiku Kigbo who stole New billion from Nigeria Pension fund and what he got was two years imprisonment it N750000 fine.
    “We are also demanding that all political office, both elected and appointed must declare their assets before assumption of office, mid way into their tenure and at the end of their office so that we can know whether they have stolen or not.
    “Our generation and generation yet unborn will suffer for the consequences of not fighting corruption. For the first time in our history, workers went eight months without salaries. Let us Fight the symptom. The disease is corruption and lack of good governance,” Wabba stated.
    He also warned the judiciary against issuing perpetual injunctions restraining the EFCC from prosecuting corrupt officers.
    “If we have such cases, Nigerian workers are ready to go their residence and bring them to court and also interrogate the judge.
    “Our judiciary must sit up. Gone are the days when perpetual injunctions are issued,,restraining agencies of government from prosecuting corrupt public officers. We must be on the same page and therefore, Nigerian workers are ready to invade the courts and the sanctity of such judges,” Wabba said.

  • Unions not proscribed

    The Vice Chancellor AAUA Prof. Igbekele Ajibefun, said the institution’s five staff unions are not proscribed.There has been a lull in the activities of the staff unions after the industrial action embarked upon by workers three years ago.

    Ajibefun said:  “I have not seen any document that says there should be no SSANU, NASU and NAAT. Nobody has asked them not to operate. I think those unions went on hibernation on their own. However, I share the thought of members of the unions that it is better not to have something on ground now than to have something that will put them in more problems.

    “Responsible unionism is an important issue to every tertiary institution in Nigeria. As management, we will want to promote responsible unionism. When we see a union that is responsible, we will support it.  When they have people that can lead them well, we will give them support and whatever we can do to make them come back to life, we will do that.  What is needed is responsible leadership.”

     

  • ‘South African unions may accept pay offer’

    The leaders of South Africa’s biggest gold producers said it’s likely unions will accept an improved pay offer as the industry looks to avert a repeat of a strike that crippled the world’s biggest platinum mines for five months.

    Gold has dropped 10 percent since wage talks started June 22, touching a five-year low and hurting companies already contending with higher output costs. In the revised proposal, producers reduced their wage-deal term to three years from five and said they would increase basic pay by more than before.

    “I think it’s extremely likely that they will accept,” Harmony Gold Mining Co. Chief Executive Officer Graham Briggs told reporters in Johannesburg Friday. “It’s a fair offer. It’s a final offer.”

    A strike over pay halted most South African mines of the world’s three-biggest platinum operators from January to June last year.

    “The appetite for anything similar to what happened in platinum is not very high,” Sibanye Gold Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Neal Froneman said.

    AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. and Sibanye proposed to raise monthly pay for entry-level workers by 1,000 rand ($79) annually for the three years started July 1, 2015, they said last week  in a statement. Harmony offered a 500-rand increase. Basic pay is currently about 5,800 rand. Living-out allowances will be raised by 100 rand in the first year from 2,000 rand now.

    The revisions would mean increases of as much as 11 percent for Harmony’s lowest-paid workers and 13 percent for Sibanye and AngloGold employees in the first year, the companies said Friday. South Africa’s inflation rate was 4.7 percent in June.

    The increase of monthly pay doesn’t translate into higher benefits, and the offer only applies if all four unions agree to it, the companies said.

    The National Union of Mineworkers, which speaks for about 52 percent of employees at the producers, this month lowered its demand for basic pay to 9,500 rand. While that was 9.5 percent below its previous request, it’s still at least 60 percent more than current wages. The organisation is disappointed with the offer, NUM General Secretary David Sipunzi has said .

    The NUM, Solidarity and UASA will respond to the proposal by August. 7, while the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union said August 4, Elize Strydom, the chief negotiator on behalf of the producers at the Chamber of Mines, told reporters.

  • Unions reject South African coal producers’ pay increase offer

    The four unions representing coal workers in South Africa, the continent’s biggest producer of the fuel, rejected a pay offer by producers including Anglo American Plc, Glencore Plc and Exxaro Resources Ltd.

    The companies proposed an increase of 4.6 percent, the Chamber of Mines, which represents them, said in an e-mail. The inflation rate was 4.6 percent in May.

    The National Union of Mineworkers, Solidarity, the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union and UASA labour groups rejected the offer, Franz Stehring, head of mining at UASA, said by phone.

    The NUM, the biggest labour group, wants a 15 percent raise for members, spokesman Livhuwani Mammburu said by phone.

    The producers’ offer will “prolong the negotiations process,” Deon Reyneke, head of energy industry at Solidarity, said in an e-mailed statement.

    South Africa’s coal-mining industry directly employs almost 90,000 people and paid about 19 billion rand ($1.5 billion) in wages in 2014, according to the chamber. The talks are taking place as coal prices have dropped 31 percent since the start of 2014 amid a global supply glut that Morgan Stanley forecasts will grow due to lower demand from China.

    Negotiations will resume tomorrow, the chamber said.

     

  • Unions order striking UI workers to resume

    Unions order striking UI workers to resume

    The three non academic staff unions at the University of Ibadan have directed their members to resume work on Monday after a three-day protest over non-payment of “ earned allowance.’’

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the three unions embarked on a protest over non- implementation of the allowance last Monday.

    The directive ordering members back to work was given at a joint congress of the Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities, (SSANU), Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and National Association of Academic Technologists (NAAT) held at the university’s main gate.

    The Chairman of SSANU, Wale Akinremi, who spoke on behalf of the unions after the congress, said that the workers embarked on the ‎protest to alert management of its responsibility.

    He said that the management had already met with the union executives and signed an agreement to effect the payment of the allowance.

    “We discussed the agreement with the Vice chancellor in the presence of the Bursar and the Registrar that the implementation of what we have asked for will commence immediately.

    “We believe the management led by the vice chancellor ‎will effect the payment and there will not be any problem in the university, ” he said

  • Varsity unions want Nuc scribe sacked

    Non-teaching unions of Nigerian universities have called for the sack of the Executive Secretary of the National Universities Commission (NUC), Prof. Julius Okojie, accusing him of working against the attainment of peaceful atmosphere in the universities.

    Addressing a news conference under the auspices of the Joint Action Committee, the unions also accused some unnamed top government functionaries of frustrating the implementation of the 2009 agreement signed by the unions and the government.

    The unions, which said they had to suspend all notices of strike as a sign of respect for the President-elect, General Mubammadu Buhari, included the National Association of Academic Technologists, Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and Non-Academic Staff of Universities.

    The unions drew the attention of General Buhari to the existing problems in the universities, saying he was inheriting debilitating labour issues in the universities.

    Speaking on behalf of the unions, President of the SSANU, Charles Ugwoke, accused  government of continuously breaching the 2009 collective agreement between the unions and the government, adding that members of the unions had become so restive that “it is becoming a huge task restraining them from using trade union tactics to achieve the implementation of the agreements.”

    While congratulating  General  Buhari for his electoral victory, Ugwoke said: “We wish to remind him that he is inheriting debilitating labour issues in the universities.

    “These require his very urgent attention on assuming governance. In deference of his emergence as President-elect, some of our unions have had to shelve actions on strike notices already given to protect the interest of our members.

    “We, hereby, present to you the impunity going on in the education sub-strata of our economy with overzealous and over bearing attitude of some government officials in charge of university education against our unions and the welfare of our members.

    “We suspect that this is programmed to force our unions into a national strike which we have not designed. All our peaceful efforts to make the Ministry of Education, National Universities Commission and vice chancellors to stop working against the interest of our members have not yielded the desired results.

    “We are appalled that these agencies of government have decided to take the peaceful disposition and approach of our unions to industrial relations for granted”.

    He explained that in the agreement signed with the unions, “it was provided that the government, through the university councils should fully fund university primary schools while the universities provide infrastructure for the secondary schools.

    “We are worried that the NUC Executive Secretary in concert with vice chancellors in some cases have either sacked or threatened to sack the teachers and non-teaching staff who are our members and bonafide university staff in such schools withouit recourse to our unions or renegotiation.”

  • Poly reverses unions’ suspension

    The management of the Federal Polytechnic, Ado-Ekiti in Ekiti State, has reversed the suspension of workers’ unions.

    The unions are the Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics (ASUP), the Non-Academic Staff Union (NASU) and the Senior Staff Association of Polytechnics (SSANIP).

    The unions went on strike to protest unpaid allowances and other welfare issues, leading to the closure of the school on January 20 after a protest by students.

    Chairman of the Governing Council Victor Ebomoyi announced the decision to lift the suspension after its 95th statutory meeting.

    The council also reversed the order freezing the accounts of the unions.

    A statement yesterday by the Deputy Registrar (Information), Ade Adeyemi-Adejolu, said the decision was in deference to the directive of Education Minister Ibrahim Shekarau.

    Ebomoyi said the council’s decision was hinged on the minister’s directive that it would engender the return of peace and normalcy for full academic activities.