labour activism in nigeria: nlc’s resistance to ‘anti-labour’ policies, since 1999
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TABLE OF CONTENTS.
1. Chapter One.
Introduction.
i. Definition of topic.ii. Scope.iii. Significance.iv. Methodology.v. Sources.vi.
2. Chapter Two.
Labour activism in Nigeria
i. Brief history of labour movement in Nigeria, to 1999.ii. List of Labour unions in Nigeria.
3. Chapter Two.
Anti-labour policies.
i. Casualisation of workers in Nigeria.ii. Reactions to casualisation by labour organizations.
iii. Families at work: First Bank of Nigerias policy on couples.iv. Reactions by Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) andorganized labour.
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CHAPTER ONE.
INTRODUCTION.
The journey of a thousand leagues begins with a single step.
Lao Tzu
Definition of topic:
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) is the umbrella body of all
trade unions in Nigeria. Made up of 29 unions, it represents all shades of
workers in the country. One can say, in fact, that the NLC is the mother of
the Nigerian labourer, protector of his rights and privileges. Its vehemence
in the struggle to wipe out policies that endanger the welfare of its
children has given it the status of an opposition party in the often over-heated polity of the Nigerian state. Yet it is unrelenting.
The topic of this essay is Labour activism in Nigeria: NLCs
resistance to anti-labour policies, since 1999. When one looks at the
topic, the message is almost instantly if not instantly grasped. A
mothers battle to safeguard her fragile babies from he threats that surround
them. Put simply, this essay seeks to highlight the different contentious
issues between the NLC and the employers of labour in Nigeria.
Highlighting theses issues is not enough, though it is necessary. The
reactions of the NLC to the anti-labour policies employed by labour
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employers will also be put in the limelight, their successes and failures
included.
Scope of the essay:
This essay will focus on the past five years of the fourth republic in
the political history of Nigeria. This time-frame is so because this has been
the period when democracy as we know it has been practiced in Nigeria.
More than before, the individual can express himself, assured of the
covering which the constitution provides him. The NLC and any other
organization for that matter is not hampered by the fear of military
dictatorship or tyranny, and as such, can be as aggressive as the constitution
allows. This allows for stable and level plain for the scrutiny of all parties
involved. This ultimately leads to an objective study.
Significance of the essay:
Since 1999, the NLC, using the platform of the new democratic stage,
has increased its fight against what it has termed anti-labour policies.
Because the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, allows for
the freedom of expression, speech and unionization among others, the NLC
has been able to effectively mount a resistance to policies which it finds
appalling.
Today, the Nigerian worker, who the NLC claims is the provider of
labour, sees himself in a situation where he is like a commodity, disposable
at will. The failure of the government to be an unbiased umpire on the
economic field has aided the employers of labour to administer more
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lethally, their policies which worsen the already deplorable state of the
worker. So the NLC claims. Policies such as casualisation of workers, out-
sourcing of workers, and non-unionization of workers are of major concern
not only to the NLC, but to the employees themselves. The above-mentioned ills will be highlighted in subsequent chapters of this essay, with
the reactions of the NLC to the continued implementation of them by the
employers of labour.
The past five years have been described as a democratic experiment
in Nigeria. As earlier mentioned, these years provide for an objective study
of the situation at hand. This essay hopes to maximally exploit the
opportunity which this period provides. This essay is therefore significant in
the sense that it believes that because of the practice of democracy, both the
NLC and employers of labour will be free to give any and every useful
information which will eventually bring out the whole truth for the
appreciation of all. The media as well, should be able to disseminate
information without fear of intimidation.
Another significance of this essay is the important role which the
information it relays will play in the continued effort at the building the
Nigerian state.
At the end of the essay, it is hoped that another stone has been laid onthe foundation of the nation.
Methodology:
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This essay shall be divided into four chapters, each handling separate
topics.
The First Chapter introduces the NLC. A brief outline of its history isgiven, followed by a list of its affiliate unions.
In Chapter Two, the essay will focus on the policy of casualisation,
discussing the way it is operated. The First Bank of Nigeria (FBN)s
infamous policy on couples will also be treated.
Chapter Three will focus on other contentious issues between the
NLC and employers of labour. Specifically, the focus will be on non-
unionization and out-sourcing of workers.
Finally, in Chapter Four, there will be a brief summary of the three
previous chapters. A few personal opinions will be included here as well.
Sources:
It is never easy exploring new grounds and writing on a virgin
topic. There are no secondary sources of information to consult, and when
there are, they are very few, if not scarce. This is the dilemma I face.
Primary source are, however, available. They include M. A TokunbohsLabour Movement in Nigeria: past and present, Funmi Adewunmis edited
work, Trade Unionism in Nigeria: Challenges for the 20th century. It was
however not easy to get at these sources. It required much traveling to
distant places. This cost a lot in time and money. Yet, it was worth it.
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CHAPTER TWO.
BRIEF HISTORY OF THE LABOUR MOVEMENT IN NIGERIA, TO
1999.
Labour creates Wealth.
NLC Motto.
Man is a social animal. Wherever he resides he seeks to not onlyassert his dominance, but to protect his interest. These interests can be
social, political, economical, cultural or otherwise.
The Nigerian worker is human. Therefore, he seeks to protect his
interests.
A trade union can be defined as a group of workers that are either in
the same or different trades who come together to form a common front in
order to bargain with the employers, using the principles of collective
bargaining, for better pay and working conditions.
From the late 19th century when the Royal Niger Company was
chartered (1886) to administer, make treaties, levy customs and trade in all
territories in the basin of the Niger and its effluents,1 the number of people
in paid employment increased. These workers who worked under the
system of semi forced labour were recruited from the Chiefs, and worked
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under the direction of headmen appointed by these Chiefs. Others were
recruited from the small number of primary and secondary schools, whose
pupils often abandoned schooling to take advantage of the glittering
prospects and enhanced social prestige, attached to white-collar jobs. Thosein the category of forced labour considered membership of a protest
group as disloyalty to the village Chiefs and elders who got them the jobs.
Because of the limitations faced by the semi forced labour groups in
fighting for their welfare, the first combination of workers to form what
resembled, at least, a trade union was made up of clerical staff and trained
apprentices in certain trades. These apprentices formed the nucleus of trade
unions among technical workers, and also helped to erode the fear among
the group of forced labour.2 Records show that in Lagos an association of
clerks in the civil service and an association of clerks in commercial
establishments were formed in 1905 and 1911 respectively.
Against this background, the first recorded trade union, the Southern
Nigerian Civil Service Union, was organized in 1912. It was inaugurated on
19th August 1912, and attended by 33 employees. The Union later changed
its name to the Nigerian Civil service after the third and final amalgamation
of the Protectorates of Northern and Southern Nigerian that gave birth to
modern Nigerian.3 The NCS was, however, a senior officers association,
as its, membership was open to only native officials, including those withinthe rank of 1st class. This union was highly aristocratic and indeed, timid. It
was more or less a social organization of intellectuals, who began, even
faintly, to see themselves as a class.
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On the fourth of February 1919, following an agreement reached
between clerks and mechanics, the Nigerian Railway Native Staff Union was
launched with 110 members in attendance. According to its constitution, the
union was formed to promote official interests and welfare (of the NigerianRailway) and to inculcate in members the principles of devotion to duty and
loyalty to government. The Union will also undertake to seek redress for
grievances by constitutional means.4 Even though the union claimed to be
all-embracing (excluding labourers), it operated much like NCSU. The
technical staff in various government departments especially the Nigeria
railway organized on 13th September 1919, to form the Nigerian Mechanics
Union. By the end of that same year, the three workers unions had
established branches in Benin City, Oshogba Warri, Sapele, Kaduna,
Onitsha, Ibadan, Offa, Minna and Zaria.5 The above mentioned unions
these were not the only unions at the time represents attempts by manual
workers in the public service to organize themselves into one entity which
would fight for them. In 1931, the Nigerian Union of Teachers was
inaugurated marking the first attempt at unionizing workers in the private
sector.
These unions in their own way had successes, which in turn inspired
the formation of other unions in the country. For example, the Michael
Imoudu-led strike against the Railway Management on January 9, 1920,
encouraged other unions to act in the same manner, adopting a radicalapproach in their struggle for a better work package.
The increasing tendency of the unions to get militant in their approach
towards unfair government policies prompted the colonial administration
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to enact, in 1938, a law which was known as the Trade Union Ordinances.
This law came into effect on April 1, 1939.
It provided for the registration of trade unions before they could
embark on any action which would further enhance their cause. Also, underthe law, the unions were also to submit their annual accounts and legal
protection of union funds. In order to give the law more credibility, the
government established on inspectorate of labour in 1939. The inspectorate
was headed by Mr. C.H. Crosdale, a popular senior administrative officer,
who was initially assisted by two labour Inspectors. The Inspectorate had its
main functions as the organization of trade unions and to effect improvement
in labour conditions. The effect of this ordinance was that it
professionalized the leadership of the unions and led to the registration of
quasi unions because of its loose definition of trade union. Such quasi
unions were Ote Tomo Native Herbalist Union (membership 10), Ijebu
Produce Traders Union Ibadan, African Petrol and Oil Retailers Association
(20) and Lagos Union of Auctioneers (21).6 These unions, once registered,
found occasions to throw social parties to which employers (General
Mangers) were invited and the speeches were punctuated with demands for
improved conditions. The certificate of registration was cherished and
regarded as a license to call out workers on strike. 7
The government, in 1914, enacted two laws to regulate labour-
employer relation and to improve the lot of workers who suffered industrialaccidents at work. These laws, the Trade Dispute and Arbitration Ordinance
and the Workmens Compensation Ordinance, were enacted as a result of
the railway Lock-out incident of 1941.
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The Trade Dispute and Arbitration Ordinance provided for
government intervention in disputes between trade unions and employers. It
also provided for a conciliation service through officials of the Department
of Labour and for voluntary arbitration machinery at either sides requestduring a trade dispute. The Workmens Compensation Ordinance provided
for compensation to a workman or his dependants if during the course of his
work, there was an accident that resulted either in death or incapacity. Up
till toady, the provisions of this ordinance still apply.
Following the introduction of the three laws mentioned above, the
Governments Inspectorate of Labour was transformed into Department of
Labour in October 1942 under the leadership of a senior administrative
official, Captain Miller. This was done because the machinery of the
Inspectorate of Labour was inadequate to cope with the new development.
Expatriate labour officers were recruited from the United Kingdom to train
the labour leaders. The governments attitude to the trade unions, in this,
and many more ways changed for the better.
The 1940s ushered in a period, which saw an attempt to form a central
trade union. The agitation to form a parent body of all the unions was
informed by a need to coordinate accurately the activities of the many
unions which were formed as a result of the newly enacted labour laws, and
governments repentant attitude to labour unions. Another factor thatprompted the desire to form a central union was the introduction, in 1914, of
governments General Defense Regulations. This law made strikes and
lockouts illegal. The labour leaders felt that the law should affect only
essential services and nothing else, as this would be trespassing on the rights
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of the workers. The leaders observed that it was a difficult battle for any
union or sectional formation such as the African Civil Servants Technical
Workers Unions (ACSTWU) to fight alone, thus the need for a central
labour union, seeing that the issue at hand affected all shades of labour.
On the 23rd day of November 1942, a representative meeting of all
trade unions operating in and around Lagos was convened, with
representatives of 23 trade unions in attendance. Prior to this time, there had
been wide consultations among labour leaders and the president of the
Nigerian Youth movement, Mr. Ernest Ikoli. At the said meeting, a central
union body was formed and christened Federated Trades Union of Nigeria.
A resolution was passed and signed by all the presidents and secretaries of
all trade unions at the meeting. Among other things, the resolution
demanded that government consult labour when formulating policies, which
affected it, as well as establish labour councils with legal status to regulate
conditions in various trades. A provisional committee of the federation was
elected with Mr. T.A. Bankole as president and M.N. Tokunboh as secretary
(Tokunboh, 1985).
Having confidence in its inherent strength and achievements, the
Federated Trades Union of Nigeria convened a conference of trade unions
on 31st July 1943. This was the first of its kind in Nigeria, as no other
national movement had held a conference prior to this time. The conferencewas attended by 200 delegates who represented 56 trade unions from all
over Nigeria. This conference showcased the unity and vitality of labour as
the new power block in Nigerian affairs, and it created a new social
consciousness in the mind of workers.
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At the conference, many decisions were taken, some of which were:
Change of name to Trade Union Congress of Nigeria; adoption of a
constitution, which allowed for the playing of a mediatory role by the TUCN
in any conflict concerning members. These member-unions were however,to retain their individual rights to pursue all matters directly affecting their
members. The TUCN only came in where the matter became a general
concern of all trade unions. A journal known as The Nigerian Worker was
also established. The government recognized the congress because of its
great strength and representative nature, and many government committees
had representatives of Congress in them. The congress leaders, because of
their moderation and dedication to the cause of the workers won great
respect.
Although the TCN had many lofty ideas at its inception, it could not
realize these goals because of disagreements which led to a split within the
congress. There are three major reasons that led to this split. In the first
place, some officials of the TUCN were accused of weakness and
incapability in the leadership of the congress. This was prompted by the
allegations that the congress, since inception had become pliable in the
hands of the government and its agencies, and thus, was not representative
of labour. Secondly, in June 1948, Charles Daddy Onyeama, an Igbo lawyer
and member of the legislative council, predicted that Igbo domination of
Nigeria is a matter of time 8. This statement led to the feud between theIgbo and Yoruba elements in the congress, which in turn led to the move by
a pan-Yoruba group, the Egbe Omo Oduduwa, to strip the Igbos of key
position within the congress. This is led to ethnicity within the labour
movement.
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Politically, the inclusion of M.A Imoudu (Secretary General, TUCN)
on the National Council of Nigeria and Camerouns (NCNC) delegation to
London to protest the provisions of the Richards Constitution brought
organized labour into the struggle for independence. This move brought theTUCN into affiliation with the NCNC, despite official opposition. The
effect of this was the polarization, along ideological lines, of the labour
movement in Nigeria.
In one camp were the conservatives who preferred that the labour
movement should not participate in politics. These conservatives were in
support of the colonial policy on trade unions. In the other camp, the
radicals resided. This group, inclined towards Marxism, favoured
affiliation to both political parties and international labour organizations.
Consequently, at the 1948 conference which was called to resolve this and
other problems, the conservatives sponsored a motion to pull out of the
NCNC/TUCN affiliation, and were successful. The radicals tried to make
the TUCN reverse its decision, but failed. In a swift move, the radicals
broke away from the TUCN to form the Nigerian National Federation of
labour (NNFL) in 1947 as a rival body to the TUCN.
Until the tragic incident in 1949 when defenseless striking coal miners
were killed by the police in Enugu, the TUC and the NNFL stayed away
from each other. This incident however, aroused nationalist sentimentsthroughout the country. And so early in March 1950, the TUCN, NNFL and
ACSTWU held a reconciliatory meeting in which differences were settled
and an agreement to merge into a singular body was reached. As a result of
this meeting, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) came into existence in
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August, 1950, under the leadership of Mr. M. Imoudu (president), F.O.
Coker (deputy president) Nduka Eze (secretary-general), N.A. Cole
(publicity secretary) and Oparah Eke (treasurer). 9 This NLC was the first
(Tokunboh, 1985).
This first NLC could not progress because the union between the
radicals and the conservatives was an uneasy one, thus it crumbled. The
immediate problem that led to the collapse was that of the leadership of the
body. In the election into the offices of the new body, all the important
posts went to the radicals. This led to insecurity in the camp of the en-
TUCN officials who felt they were being dominated, and as a result, refused
to surrender their assets to the NLC. In this way, the NLC was short of
funds, and could not carry out its activities affectively.
By 1952, due to the guilt felt by the leading trade unionists in Nigeria
about the increasing labour disunity in the country, the labour union leaders
sought to stop the now normal trend in the Nigerian labour movement. In
July 1953, the Railway Workers union organized a labour unity conference,
which started the ball that led to the formation of, in August 1953, the All-
Nigerian Trade Union Federation (ANTUF) rolling. The old problems of
radicals vs. conservatives started again. This time around, the pitch was
that at the issue of international affiliation. While the former group
preferred the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), the latter grouppreferred the International Confederation Free Trade Unions (ICFTU).
In 1957, a motion calling for the affiliation of the ANTUF to the
ICFTU was sponsored. This was seen as deliberate attempts by some
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mischievous people to cause commotion in this union. The ANTUF
leadership had, in order to avoid trouble refused to join or to be affiliated to
any of the two international trade centers. In reaction to the refusal of the
ANTUF leadership to pass the motion, a group broke out and formed a rivalbody, the National Council of Trade Unions of Nigeria (NCTUN). Because
the NCTUN was given official recognition almost immediately after its
formation, there was suspicion that government was behind the move. The
rivalry between these two groups continued bill late 1958 when union
leaders sought to merge to form a common union in the face of
governments threat, 10 and the soon coming independence.
This led to a series of meetings between the leaders of ANTUF and
NCTU who sought to unify. In March, 1959, the leaders agreed to dissolve
the two bodies, and form the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUCN) for
the second time. As the other unions before it, the TUCN fell because of the
same problems leadership positions and international affiliation.
Yet again, in 1961 another central body, the United Labour congress
(ULC) was formed with the aid of the All-Nigeria Peoples Conference. It
was plagued with the same problems. Out of the ULC emerged the
Independence Unite Labour congress (IULC) and the United Labour
Congress of Nigeria (ULCN). In 1963, out of the ULCN, a splinter group,
the Nigeria Workers Council (NWC) emerged. This body had to contendwith two others, the Labour Unity Front (LUF) and the Nigerian Trade
Union Federation (NTUF). Up to the outbreak of the civil war, there was no
labour unity in Nigeria.
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After the civil war, workers became more militant in their agitation
for revised wages and salaries. In response to this, the Federal Military
Government appointed a wage commission under the Chief Simeon Adebo.
Sensing the need to be unified in order to tender a single and strongerargument, the United Committee of Central Labour Organization (UCCLO)
was established in August, 1970, to find ways of forming a new central
labour union. The UCCLO was successful to the extent that in December
1975, the second NLC was formed after the dissolution and merger of the
ULC, LUF, NTUC and NWC. The machinery for this had been set in
motion in 1974 with the Apena Cemetery Declaration (Tokunboh, 1985).
The new NLC was not received well by the government which felt it
would form an opposition to its policy of labour restructuring and control.
Subsequently, the government refused to grant the NLC recognition by
placing an embargo on its registration. In this way, government intervention
in matters affecting labour had begun (Tokunboh, 1985).
Because of this move by government, the third NLC was formed in
Ibadan in 1978, even though the process had begum sine 1976. This was
followed by governments enactment of the Trade Union (Amendment)
Decree No. 22 of 1978 which dissolved the second NLC, recognizing only a
central labour union as well as 70 unions including 42 industrial unions
which were all to affiliate to the NLC. Not unlike former labour unions, this
new NLC was still plagued by the disease of labour disunity. However,despite this problem and the new issue of government intervention in the
affairs of labour, this third NLC has remained up till toady. On January 29th,
1999, the NLC held a National Delegates Conference (following the death of
Nigerias infamous military dictator, General Sani Abacha), to elect the
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Current leadership. The NLC of today has Comrade Oshiomhole as its
President.
The Industrial Unions of Nigeria affiliated to the Nigeria Labour Congress
(NLC)
NAME Address President and
Secretary
Telephone/email
Agric and AlliedWorkersUnion of
Nigeria (AAWUN)
Pot 30 KuntunkuLayoutOff FRCN
Road, Lagos
B.Mohammed( Pres)
R.O.Idumajogwu( Sec)
08023081254
aawun@nlcng.org
Amalgamated Unionof Public
Corporation, CivilService Technical
and Recreationalservices employees
(AUPCTRE)
9 Aje Street, Yaba M.Amaike-President
S.O.Z Ejiofor-Secretary
01- 86637722
aupctre@nlcng.org
Maritime Workers
Union Of Nigeria(MWUN)
119 Osho Drive
Off Kirikiri Road
O.Irabor-
PresidentS.A. Ubani- Gen
Sec
01-7740532, 090-413272
080-22906508 President08022906506
mwun@nlcng.org
Medical & Health
Workers Union ofNigeria (MHWUN)
House 2, Biu
Close, By OyoStreet, Area 2,
Section 1, Garki,Abuja
K.I.Faleye
-PresidentJ.A.Ogunseyin-
Sec
092344259,0804418125
092348687/08044181246mhwun@nlcng.org
National Associationof Nig Nurses &
Midwives (NANNM)
Plot 890, AsabaClose, Off Emeka
Anyako St, Area11, Garki Abuja
Pat Eze -PresidentM.A. Matu- Gen
Sec
Lagos: 0802322006.2347594,08022231850
09 2340945nannm@nlcng.org
National Union of AirTransport
Employees (NUATE)
InternationalAirport Road,
Beecham BusStop, Ikeja
C.C. Nnorom- PresE.D. Fidelis Gen
Sec
01 4963812,08023024991080 33018168
nuate@nlcng.org
National Union ofBanks, Insurance &
Financial InstitutionEmployees (NUBIFE)
310, HerbertMacaulay St,
Sabo, Ikeja
B.Babayola-President
M.Mamman- GenSec
01862577,08022241239
nubife@nlcng.org
National Union of 200 Herbert Adio Moses-01 86173, 4710679
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Electricity
Employees (NUEE)
Macaulay St,
Ebutte- Metta,
Lagos
President
P.Kiri-Kalio
08023111732
nuee@nlcng.org
National Union of
Chemical, Footwear,Rubber, Leather &
Non-MetallicProducts
(NUCFRLANMPE)
Rainbow Maritime
Crescent, Off Ijoko Road
Moses Gbadebo-
PresEmma Ugboaja
Gen.Sec
01 7733294
0803308454908033251059
08033188747nucfrlanmpe@nlcng.org
National Union ofCivil Engineering,
Construction
Furniture & WoodWorkers
(NUCECFWW)
68, New IpajaRoad, Iyana, Ipaja
H.Adekwe-president
B. Liadi- Secretary
01-804436901 4926393
080-33209208
08033209109nucecfww@nlcng.org
National Union of
Food, Beverage andTobacco Employees
(NUFBTE)
9, Mortune
Avenue, Lagos-Abeokuta Express
Valley Estate,Cement Bus Stop,
Dopemu, Lagos
J.Onyenemere-
presM.A. Kazeem
01 7745317,08033032634
0803329469108033299445nufbte@nlcng.org
National Union of
Hotels and PersonalServices Employees
(NUHPSE)
97 Herbert
Macaulay Street,Ebutte Metta,
Lagos
M.Osuebi
PresidentF.Ehi-Iyamu
860173,4710679
08023111732nuhpse@nlcng.org
National Union Of
Petroleum andNatural Gas Workers
(NUPENG)
9,Jibowu street,
Yaba, Lagos
P.Akpatason-
PresidentJ.I.Akinlaja
4706122,5878608
0803301620108033051883nupeng@nlcng.org
National Union of
Posts andTelecommunications
Employees (NUPTE)
12,Gbaja Street,
Yaba, Lagos
A. Yabo--President
J.O.Odeajo-Sec
5851932
5851501,08023379801Fax:4522636
National Union ofPrinting, Publishing
and Paper ProductsWorkers
(NUPPPROW)
Reuben Oke-PresF.A.Salami- Sec
080229043240802290322
08023226640
National Union ofRoad Transport
Workers (NURTW)
Area11, Plot 65,Ahmadu Bello
Way,Neighbourhood
Centre , Garki,Abuja
Gidado Hamman-Pre
MohammedShuwa-Sec
09 2348472
National Union ofShop and
DistributiveEmployees (NUSDE)
64,OlonodeStreet, Yaba,
Lagos
B.B. Anokwuru-Pres
S.A. Babatunde-Sec
0802301315708033207754
08023001331
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National Union of
Textile, Garment
and TailoringWorkers
(NUTGTWN)
10, Acme Road,
Agidingbi, Ogba
Industrial estate,Ikeja, Lagos.
Kaduna Office,
B6/8 Kubi Road,
Off NasarawaEXpressway
N.A. Lawal -Pres
Issa Aremu-Sec
01 4923762/3
080330007845
08033229980062 231577
062 232438
08022904328
Nigeria Civil Service
Union (NCSU) F.C. Edeh
-PresidentN.N. Nwauzor-Sec
080 33063976
Nigeria Union ofCivil Service,
Secretariat andStenographic
(NUCSTAS)
8A,Bola Street,Ebutte Metta,
Lagos
C.N. Egeonu-PresJ.C.Adindu
Nigeria Union Of
Journalists (NUJ)
Area 11, Garki
AdjacentCorporate Affairs
Commission,(FCT)or Eric Moore,
Close Surulere,Lagos
A. Smart-Pres
S.U. Leman-G Sec
09 2343015
Nigeria Union ofLocal Government
Employees (NULGE)
Block D, Flat 3 &4, Sky Yakasai
D.Akinwalere-PresA.A.Salam
08033115049095234981
08033005810
Nigeria Union Of
Mines (NUM)
95/1 Enugu,
Road, Jos
Andrew Aben-Pre
A.Olaniyan
Nigeria Union ofPensioners (NUP)
E/9 5050,Monatan,Lagos
M.Hogan-Pres
I.O. Omotosho-GenSec
02 210085080 23279666
Nigeria Union ofRailwayMen (NUR)
33 Ekolu Street,Surulere
D.Maigoro-PresM.A.Akinyaju
Nigeria Union of
Teachers (NUT)
DagiriGwagwalada,
PMB 516
I.Omar-President
L.S.Zamani-Sec
09 8822107
098822123
Non Academic Staffof Universities
(NASU)
NW8/672, Orita
U.I, Ibadan
M.A.Takor-presPeter Adeyemi- Gen
Sec
022 81029180802224415506
08037871462
08023062719Radio, Television
and TheatreWorkers
(RATTAWU)
SW9/927A, AzzezAina Street, Ring
Road Ibadan
A.Demos-PresE.O.Ademakin-Sec
Steel and
EngineeringWorkers Union
5, Church Street,
Meiran
Monday Aguele-Pres
K.Kadiri-Gen Sec
08033023161
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(SEWUN)
Endnotes.
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1. M.A Tokunboh, Labour movement in Nigeria: Past and Present
( Lagos: Lantern books, 1985)p.18
2. Ibid.
3. Dr. B.T Bingel, Understanding Trade Unionism in Nigeria: Historical
Evolution and Prospects For Future Development in
Funmi Adewunmi, e.d, Trade Unionism in Nigeria:
Challenges for the 21st Century. (Lagos: Frederick Ebert
Foundation, 1997)p.23
4. Tokunboh, p.20
5. Ibid., p.21
6. Tokunboh, p.36
7. Ibid.
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8. Adewunmi, p.27
9. Tokunboh, p.51
10. Government had set up a commission, the Mbanefo Commission to
review wages and salaries in the public sector, as a response to mass
agitations by workers.
11. www.nlcng.org
CHAPTER THREE.
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CASUALIZATION, AND FIRST BANKS POLICY ON
COUPLES.
All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others
George Orwell in the Animal farm
Casual1 k/ adj3 [A; (B)] not serious or thorough [Wa5; A](Of workers) employed for a short period of time.1
The worker is the tiniest unit of the large wealth creating, economic
machine of any society. He is an inalienable variable in the sustenance of
the economic growth and development of any nation. He is indispensable.
However, not all workers play by the same rules. While some receive the
terms of their employment and get to sign on the dotted lines almost
immediately they are employed, others never get to. Thus, while the former
have proof of employment the latter do not, and so can be dismissed at will.
After all, they are not legally employed. All workers are equal, but some
are more equal than others.
In its vague sense, casualization can be said to mean the employment
of a worker by an employer without any formal agreement or document
which sets out the terms and conditions of employment. The employee is
thus a worker, and yet not a recognized worker. As one who does a
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required job and gets paid (even though not regularly) he is a worker; but
having no agreement or document to prove this, he cannot claim to be a
worker. He can be fired at will. In Nigeria, the Phenomenon of casual
workers is rampant. A large percentage of Nigerias workforce is made upof casual workers. This ranges from those working in small companies to
those working for the multi-national companies (MNCs). As of April 2002,
it was alleged that 50% of Coca Colas workforce were casuals2. Larger
companies such as Patterson Zocchonis (PZ) industries, Guinness Nigeria
Plc, Dunlop Nigeria and united Africa companies (UAC) were picketed in
the past by the NLC because of their continued implementation of the
casualization policy. Despite the actions of the NLC in trying to curb this
practice, the employers of labour still continue in the practice. The table
below, culled from an April 2001 bulletin of the National Union of
Petroleum and National Gas workers (NUPENG), shows how much
employers prefer casuals to those in regular employment.3
Company Workers on permanent job. Casual/ contract
workersAgip 211 1,500Elf petroleum 199 550Elf oil 42 132Shelly 520 8,000Mobil producing 492 2,200Mobil oil Nil 492
Nidogas 15 150National oil 15 178
Smit Nigeria limited 25 80Schlumberger group 250 1,000
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It is clear from the above source above (The Punch Newspapers, July,
10, 2001. p. 24), that the number of casuals greatly exceed that of regular
workers. It is safe to assume that only the top executive staff or those in
key, sensitive positions are permanent staff of these companies.
According to Elder Linus Ukamba, the vice-chairman of the NLCs
anti-casualization committee, casualization is a direct result of the
globalization campaign.4
Globalization is the process of bringing the different communities of
the world together into one global village through the use of advancement
in science and technology, information, and opening up of boarders and
barriers that before separated these communities. Thus, the aim of
globalization is to make the world a smaller place. The question is, How
has globalization led to, or encouraged casualization?
In a presentation made in 1995, Charles Tilly argued that:
Globalization undermines the state which in
the past had the capacity to establish and
guarantee rights for workers. All rights
embedded in nation-states must per force be
under threat from growing economic
internationalization and the increasing
importance of supra-national organization.While capitalists are seen to have taken full
advantage of these changes, workers on the
other hand, seem sticky, place-bound and
slower to react.5
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In an authoritative report in 1995 entitled Workers in an integrating
world (World Bank 1995), the World Bank noted that by the year 2000 less
than 10% of the world workers will not be fully integrated into the globalcapitalist economy, compared to the third of the global labour force which
Twenty years ago was engaged in socialist or statistic production relation.6
The drive of globalization to achieve social hegemony over the people of the
world is seen as unstoppable by the World Bank and the worlds workers are
given on option but submission.7
The above opinions point to the very foundation of globalization
enlarged market. Thus, with a goal to increase profit, and with the
advantage of closer communities, the employer of labour looks for the
cheapest possible means to actualize this. He is faced with the options of
either retrenchment of workers or casualization on his quest to cut costs.
Casualization seems the more beneficial, so he chooses it. Such is the effect
of globalization on workers in their various localities.
The Nigerian Labour Act (1971), concerning contract of employment
stipulates, among other provisions, that:
Not less than three months after the beginning of a
workers period of employment with an employer,
the employer shall give to the worker a written
statement specifying
a. the name of the employer or group of employers,
and when appropriate, of the undertaking by which
the worker is employed;
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f. the rates of wages and method of calculation
thereof and the manner and periodicity of payment
of wages;
g. any terms and conditions relating to-
i. hours of work, or
ii holidays and holiday pay, or
iii incapacity for work due to sickness or injury,
including any provisions for sick pay; 8
The employers of today treat their employer without regard to the
labour act. They place their workers on probation periods much longer thanthe recommended three months stipulated by the constitution. Employers do
not have much regard for Nigerian laws. For him (employer), the
employment of casual workers means that he cuts costs and turns in more
profits. This mean exposing workers to unimaginable work Conditions.
Most casual workers have no specified working hours, holidays, maternity
leave, safety and health insurance, social security, welfare facilities and
other benefits.9 Tony, a casual worker with Lagos state traffic Management
Authority (LASTMA) said that as a casual in towing operations, his daily
Job is his remuneration, and no salary.10
Casuals can be employed and dropped at will, so they are very pliable
in the hands of their employers. The employer, who in his benevolence at
times may pay the casual more than his visual salary, is able to make the
employees work at odd hours, and even do more than his job requires,without a corresponding reward or extra payment. A casual worker with
UAC complained thus: We bake bread from Monday to Friday, with a
break on Saturday only. On Sunday, we resume ahead of Monday. The
stress is unbearable, with peanuts being the salary.11
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Despite the fact that casualization hurts the workers mainly, it has
some adverse effects on the employers of labour as well. These include:
i. Low output as a result of little motivation. Because thecasual is not motivated to work, lacking the nice packages offered the
permanent workers, and because he has little or no say in the terms of
his job and does not associate freely, the casual worker will not put in
his best. This results in low output.
ii. Unsettled industrial atmosphere. There is usually no
room or provision for the casual worker to discuss with his employer,
so he relies on hearsay. He is also mostly defensively confrontational
and militant in his approach, and this leads to strikes, refusal to work,
and other actions which do not generally benefit the workplace.
iii. No proper on- the-job training. The casuals work time
with the employer is usually limited and unpredictable, as he may be
dismissed at anytime. Thus, the employer does not take out the time
to properly train him. This in turn leads to low productivity or low
quality products.
Apart from its adverse effects on the employers, casualization goes a
long way to affect the different unions which protect the interest of the
workers:
i. Loss of members. Every worker has the right to belong to anyunion. Unfortunately, because the casual is employed under terms dictated
by his employer, he is not afforded this right. This leads to the unions losing
their members who are, in fact, their strength. In this way, the unions are
weakened such that they cannot adequately protect their members interests.
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ii. Loss of revenue. As a result of their loss of members, the
unions also lose revenue. This ultimately leads to non-achievement of goals
by the unions.12
The forgoing represents arguments from the NLCs point of view.
This writer will proceed to discuss the views of affected companies.
According to Mr. Olusegun Osinowo, Director General, Nigeria
Employers Consultative Association (NECA), casualization is not totally
illegal. In his argument, he explained that
we should realize that the concept of
casualization itself is not in the labour law. It is in
the contrivance of the practitioner, labour and
employers, and it is important for us to get an
understanding of what casualization means. Within
the context, it is not illegal to use casual labour13
Towing along the same line, an official of First Bank of Nigeria Plc
argued that every company has a probation period, during which a
potential employees application for employment is considered. Of course,
such a person will, at that time, be working in the company. According to
the said official, the first Banks probation period is six months.
The NLC has always, in the light of such statements, argued that the
companies usually, in the guise of putting their workers under probation, left
these workers as casuals for very long time. Thus, there are situations where
one stays as a casual for between ten and twenty years.
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Despite and sometimes as a result of the disagreement between the
NLC and employers of labour, there have been many instances where the
two parties have agreed to sit down and dialogue. It is worthy to note
however, that almost at all times, these attempts at dialogue have alwaysproduced little or no results, thereby increasing the suspicion these two
camps have for each other. For example when the NLC planned to picket
fifty-three banks which were allegedly operating anti-labour policies such as
casualization these banks met with NLC at the instance of the federal
ministry of labour and productivity the 2nd of March 2004, and a truce was
reached.14 This is but just one of the few success stories.
In the past, following the failure of the employers to carry out the
terms of a reached agreement with the NLC, or as a result of their outright
refusal to meet with the NLC, the labour congress had employed the tool of
picketing these companies. Among companies that have played guests to
NLCs picking are Songhai packaging limited, First Bank of Nigeria Plc,
Afribank PLC, Unilever Nigeria PLC, and Eleganza industries.
The immediate results of these actions are that the picketed
companies, in an effort to stop further action by the NLC, have written the
Congress, asking for a truce. Along with asking for a truce, they have also
promised to regularize their casual workers, as well as stop all forms of anti-
labour practices. Other companies who were not picketed by the NLC, butfeared that they would, because of their involvement in anti-labour policies,
also called the Congress for negotiations. Others have dragged the Congress
to various courts. Whatever the reaction, the fact cannot be denied that the
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NLC has not only improved the lot of workers, but has also brought to
public enlightenment the plight of the Nigerian worker.
FAMILIES AT WORK: FIRST BANK OF NIGERIANS
POLICY ON COUPLES.
In April 2001, the first bank of Nigeria (FBN), one Nigerias oldestand largest banks, announced a policy posture which it had undertaken:
henceforth, couples were not to work in its employment. The policy was to
kick off on 1st June 2001, and couples had up till the 3l st Day of may to
decide which one of them would remain in the bank. The reason FBN gave
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was that it was undergoing reorganization and repositioning under a new
management and there was a need for discipline and efficiency. The bank
announced that the affected persons would be adequately compensated.15
This policy, the Bank stated, was in line with the industrys best practice.16
An FBN official, during an interview with this writer, gave three main
reasons why the policy was undertaken. First, the said official opined1
that the banks decision was hinged on the nature of banking. Expanding
further, he argued that the nature of banking was such that it consumed a lot
of time, thus a banks employee had to stay long hours away from the home
as part of his commitment to the job. Examples abound where a person
leave his house in the early hour of the morning to make it to work before
the opening time (8:00am), work all day with little time for breaks and
stays behind after the official close of work to set his records straight.
Considering where he lives, the employee may see himself arriving his home
between 8:00 pm and 10: pm. In the light of this, the FBN official said, the
banks policy was aimed at creating convenience for the affected couples.
According to him, for a worker to be effective, his out-of-job needs should
be convenient. Therefore, the employees convenience was at the helm of
banks policy decision. The employee should have enough time for his
family, especially the children.
Secondly, the official pointed out that when bank policies anddecisions concerning terms of work are being formulated, the private life of
employee is not always considered. Thus, a couple can be posted to two
1 The said official made it clear to this writer that he was giving his own personal opinion, and was notspeaking for the First Bank Of Nigeria.
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different and even far apart locations by the management of the bank. If
this happens it means that family is inadvertently flung apart by the bank.
This, he suggested, the bank was trying to avoid.
The third reason given by this official was on the issue of discipline.
According to him, bank workers do not always stays on the same position.
There are always transfers and promotion of staff, depending on their
productivity or length of stay at a particular post. If this is the case then,
what if one employee eventually gets to be his or her spouses boss? What
if, for example a woman comes to work and her boss who doubles as her
husband asks her why she is late and she replies that she was making
breakfast for him and children, how would he discipline her? The official
argued that the issue of discipline was therefore, a decisive factor in the
formulation of the bank policy. Indiscipline would invariably lead to low
productivity.
All the arguments put forward by the official of the bank are not very
convincing. One has to ask, seeing that the bank is a financial organization
and not a non-governmental\humanitarian one, was it purely for
humanitarian reasons that it took up the policy stance? Was it purely out
of concern for the welfare of the families concerned that it was ready to
spend money in compensating workers affected by the policy, and hiring
new staff? If the policy stance was mainly out of concern for the coupleswelfare, why was it not giving as an advice that couples should not work in
the same bank at the same time, instead of a law?
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In fact, all the arguments put forward by the official fell apart when
this writer asked the said official one simple question: Under this policy
would the bank have employed a person whose spouse was currently in the
employment of another bank? The answer was an affirmative, with theexcuse that different banks operate different polices. What readily comes to
mind is this: do not all banks demand heavy time investment on the part of
their employees? Do they not assign their employees to different locations?
Do they not promote their employees? The officials opinion that the bank
was trying to safeguard both the employers and employees benefits by
pursing the policy can at best, be said to be a half truth. Indeed benefits
were being safeguarded, but it seemed not to be those of the employee s.
As the same official put it, the idea of couples working at the same time in
FBN was seen as a likely obvious handicap to work..
It is needless to say at this point that this policy was never
implemented. On Wednesday, the 30th of May, 2001, First Bank of Nigeria
PLC succumbed to pressure mounted on it by the NLC and Non-
Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and announced that it had reversed its
policy on married couples. In a memorandum dated 25th of May 2001 and
addressed to all heads of departments, branches and regional, offices, the
bank stated thus:
We are pleased to advice that management has
revisited the issue and decided to allow marriedcouples to remain in its employment.17
The FBN did not change its stance because of a sudden stumbling
upon of a new advantage for the employee which it previously overlooked.
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It was in many ways seen as a male chauvinist organization by various
womens rights NGOs, and as an enemy of democracy; a neo-colonialist
organization, by the NLC.
Part of the arguments made against FBNs policy (by womens rights
groups) was that first, the bank was continuing the age old tradition of
African societies where womens rights were swept under the carpet.
According to Womens Rights Watch Nigeria (WRW), an NGO, the
policy meant a sudden loss of job for the woman because, in a patriarchal
society like Nigeria, the man would ask his wife to quit the job while he
remains. The WRW argued further that the FBN policy was a reversal of the
few gains made in Nigeria for the economic empowerment of women. The
organization argued that women have an equal access to employment, and
that the policy could be coped by other corporate organization in Nigeria.18
Independent observers argued that the policy would have, contrary to
the FBN officials arguments, caused problems in many homes. They argued
that the affected spouse may find it very hard to get another job, and
therefore, hard to contribute financially to the home. This may lead to a
situation where one party holds the other to ransom on any minor welfare
disagreement, on the excuse that he or she sacrificed his or her job for the
other.
On its part, the NLC embarked on a nation-wide picketing of the First
Bank of Nigeria PLC, which led to the banks withdrawal, on 30th May
2001, of its policy on couples.
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Endnotes.
1. Paul Procter, chief ed., Longman dictionary of contemporary English
(Essex: Longman group limited)p.160
2. The Comet, April 14, 2002. p.23
3. The Punch, July 10, 2001. p.24
4. An interview session with Elder Linus Ukamba, at the NLC headquarters,
Abuja.
5. www.protglob.hss.uts.edu.au/p_munk.html
6. Ibid.
7. Ibid.
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8. The Nigerian Labour Act, ch.198, pt., sec.7, sub.sec1
9. The Punch, July 10, 2001. p.24
10. The Comet, April 14, 2002. p.33
11. Ibid.
12. www.pengassan.org/publications.1.htm
13. The Vanguard, May 2002. p.30
14www.nationalbankplc.com/resources/pressstory.asp?NEWSID
=1078301268
15.www.icabissa.org/lists/archives/public/womensrightswatch-
nigeria/msg00000.html
16. Bola A. Akinlerinwa, conjugal rights: First Bank puts asunder in
www.thisdayonline.com/archives/2001/04/09/20010409com01.htm
17. www.kabissa.org/archives/womensrightswatch-nigeria/mg0001.htm
18. Ibid.
37
http://www.nationalbankplc.com/resources/pressstory.asp?NEWSID=1078301268http://www.nationalbankplc.com/resources/pressstory.asp?NEWSID=1078301268http://www.icabissa.org/lists/archives/public/womensrightswatch-http://www.nationalbankplc.com/resources/pressstory.asp?NEWSID=1078301268http://www.nationalbankplc.com/resources/pressstory.asp?NEWSID=1078301268http://www.icabissa.org/lists/archives/public/womensrightswatch- -
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CHAPTER FOUR.
THE POLICIES OF NON-UNIONIZATION AND OUT-
SOURCING OF WORKERS.
In Union there is strength Aesop
In the first chapter of this essay, a trade union was defined as a group
of workers that are either in the same or different trades who come together
to form a common front in order to bargain with the employers, using the
principles of collective bargaining, for better pay and working conditions.
This chapter will focus on the importance of unionization, and the reactions
of the NLC to moves by employers of labour to discourage it. Also to be
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treated, although summarily, will be the practice of out-sourcing of workers
by employers.
There are twenty-nine government-recognized trade unions in Nigeria.These unions, which are the representatives of their members and their
interests, are the workers voices in the workplace and the open market. The
workers full strength is realized when he is in his union. As Sun Tzu, the
famed Chinese general once said, He whose ranks are united in purpose
will be victorious.
The International Labour Organization (ILO), in its Right to organize
and Collective Bargaining Convention (No. 98) (of which Nigeria is a
signatory) recognizes the rights of the worker to unionize and bargain
collectively:
Article 1
1. Workers shall enjoy adequate protection against
acts of anti-union discrimination in respect of theiremployment.
2. Such protection shall apply more particularly in
respect of acts calculated to:
(a) Make the employment of a worker
subject to the condition that he shall not
join a union or shall relinquish trade
union membership.
(b) Cause the dismissal of or otherwise
prejudice a worker by reason of union
membership or because of participation
in union activities outside working hours
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or with the consent of the employer,
within working hours.
Similarly, the Nigerian Labour Act 9 (6) states that:No contract shall:
(a) Make it a condition of employment that a
worker shall or shall not join a trade union or
shall or shall not relinquish membership of a
trade union; or
(b) Cause the dismissal of, or otherwise prejudice a
worker
(i) By reason of trade union membership,
or
(ii) Because of trade union activities
outside working hours or, with the
consent of the employer, within working
hours, or
(iii) By reason of the fact that he has lost or
been deprived of membership of a trade
union or has refused or been unable to
become, or for any other reason is not, a
member of a trade union.2
These laws are very clear on their positions concerning the issue of
unionization. Many organizations, including the ILO, see the unionization
of a countrys work force as a continuation of the culture of democracy in
that country. As earlier stated, the Nigerian worker, as a social animal, seeks
to protect his rights and interests by joining a trade union. The union is the
voice and strength of the workers.
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The benefits of unionization are tremendous. According to Lawrence
Mishel and Mathew Walters report (How Union help all workers), 3 unions
have a substantial impact on the compensation and work lives of bothunionized and non-unionized workers. According to them:
I. Unions raise wages. This is one of the main goals of unions,
and a major reason why workers seek collective bargaining. For over a
century, researchers have studied how much wage raises unions have been
able to influence, whom for, and the consequences of organizing workers
into unions for workers, firms, and the economy. The decision by the
Federal Government of Nigeria, in 2002 to raise workers wages by 25% is
as a result of pressure put on it by the Nigerian Labour Congress and its
affiliated unions to do so. The unionized workers benefit more from the
unions in the sense that, because of the agitations by their unions, their
earnings exceed that of comparable non-unionized workers.
II Unions lessen wage inequality. Historically, unions have raised
the wages of low-skilled workers more than those of high-skilled
workers. Again the 25% wage increase agitated for by the NLC is an
example. The targeted levels to be affected the most in the civil service, by
the increase in wages are the junior levels. Hirsch and Schumacher (1998),
in their studies on the universal findings of the intensive literature onunions, wages and worker skills state that:
The standard explanation for this result
is that unions standardize wages by
decreasing differentials across and
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within job positions (Freeman 1980)
so that low-skilled workers receive a
larger premium relative to their
alternative non-union wage.4
III. Unions help secure fringe benefits for their members. Not
only do unions, through frequent agitations, make sure that their members
get non-wage packages such as adequate health insurance, they make sure
their members get these benefits as, and when due. It is not a rare sight to
see either the NLC or concerned unions protesting outside one government
parastatal building or another or outside a private company for the payment
of fringe benefits due their members. Because of the unions, studies have
shown, unionized workers are provided better paid leave and better health
and pension plans.
IV. Unions help set acceptable work standards, which in turn have a
positive effect on non-unionized workers. If, for example, there is a strong
labour union in A industries, non-union employers in such an industry will
frequently meet union standards, or at least improve their labour practices
beyond what they would have provided if there were no union presence.
This phenomenon is sometimes called the union threat effect. It is the
degree to which non-unionized workers get well treated by their employers
who are trying to forestall unionization. Unions have also, through their
presence and activities, set down general practices of labour, which havebecome the rule.
V. Unions enforce the rights of the workers. Through such bodies
as the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), the NLC, for instance,
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has helped in shaping legislations concerning labour. In this capacity (of
enforcing the rights of workers) the unions help in three important ways.
First, they air the views of workers regarding laws and regulations which
they (the workers) need, and have been influential in getting these lawsenforced. Second, they educate workers about their rights and available
programmes. Third, they encourage workers to exercise workplace rights
and participate in programs by reducing fear of employer retribution, helping
members with the necessary procedures, and facilitating the handling of
workers rights disputes.5 Unions have also been very helpful in ensuring
that labour protections are not just paper promises at the workplace.
These unions ensure that the workers rights are ensured and that labour
disputes are negotiated in such a way that the worker is adequately and fairly
treated.
Through the process of collective bargaining, the NLC is able to
achieve the above stated benefits for its member-unions, and inadvertently,
the workers who make up these unions. Collective bargaining is the process
of negotiating on a whole range of issues bordering on the regulation of the
terms and conditions of employment between workers and employers or
government, aimed at collective agreement. The NLC sees collective
bargaining as the most rational process of determining and reviewing the
terms and conditions of employment. The process manifests the power
relationship between the employers and the trade unions.6
It is evident then, from the discourse so far, that unionization is a very
essential variable in the survival of the worker in todays Nigeria. So has the
NLC argued. However, this view is not shared whole-heartedly by the
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employers of labour, many of whom are not comfortable with very vibrant
labour unions.7 These employers feel threatened by unions who have
become so powerful that they can cripple the activities of employers that
they perceive as indulging in anti-labour practices.8 In order to curb thistherefore, many employers have, at different times and through different
methods, sought to water down the influence of trade unions in their
different areas of employment.
Most employers seek to discourage unionization of workers by
discharging from their services key union supporters. Those employees the
employers feel are capable of stirring up union sentiments are either sacked
or threatened with one if they do not withdraw their support for union
activities, especially in the work place. This was evident during the writing
of this essay when this writer talked with employees of different companies.
These employees, in giving their opinions concerning employer-employee
relations, chose to do so anonymously, lest they be reprimanded for
sympathizing with the NLC. The UAC worker mentioned in Chapter Three
who complained about his working terms and conditions clearly exemplifies
this point.
Another tactic which employers of labour use in their bid to
discourage unionization is the promise of economic incentives to those
employees who are not unionized. For example, the employer, in the wakeof a threat of a union formation in his company may call his staff and
promise to increase their pay if only they do not join any union. This tactic
has proved more effective in Nigeria where more than three-quarters of the
population live in one form of poverty or the other. Therefore, the
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employees will jump at any offer of wage increase, even if it means
abandoning the plan for a union. Where the employer does not achieve his
aim of discouraging union activities by promising to add to their pay, he
threatens to deduct from it. Governor Bola Tinubu of Lagos State employedthis tactic in 2000, when he threatened to pay striking workers N5500,
instead of the N7500 approved as minimum wage for civil servants. The
president Obasanjo administration has also tried this trick when it said it
would not pay striking lecturers in 2003.
Employers often embark on the victimization of workers sympathetic
to unionization. Often times, these workers are disciplined for infractions
that were previously overlooked by their employers. The reactions of the
workers under such conditions usually give their employers the excuse they
need in order to sack them. According to the NLC president, Comrade
Adams Oshiomhole, Apart from frustrating all efforts of the union at
unionization, workers who have indicated interest to be members of the
unions have been subjected to varying degrees of dehumanization and
victimization, including disengagement from work.9
On its part, the government, as an employer and as one seeking
foreign investments, constantly employs tactics which ironically contravenes
the very laws it enacted. The government either seeks to water down the
strength of unions the NLC in particular by proposing unpopular bills, orby arresting and locking up labour leaders during protests by the unionists
over alleged unfair industrial practices. Take for example the events of
Wednesday, 5th July 2000. On that day, Mr. Adigun Popoola, a member of
the Council of Industrial Unions (CIOU) operating in Lagos State public
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service was cut down by the bullets of policemen during what the CIOU
described as a peaceful procession. As if this was not enough, Comrade
Ayodele Adeleke, chairman of CIOU in Lagos State was arrested by
members of the State Security Service (SSS) that same day for hisparticipation in the unions protest.10 Comrade Adeleke was to be later
shown the way out of the civil service in 2001 by the Tinubu
administration in Lagos State because of his leadership role in the struggle
for the implementation of the minimum wage agreement of the year 2000.
In January 2002 and July 2003, several labour leaders were arrested for
addressing mass rallies and organizing picketing in protests against the hike
in the prices of petroleum products.11
The new Trade Union Bill proposed by the
Obasanjo regime and presently before the National
Assembly which seeks to give the government
power to de-register trade unions, reveals
unambiguously the growing intolerance of the
ruling class in general, and Obasanjo government in
particular, to the mass and popular opposition to
their anti-poor, pro-rich neo-liberal policies of
deregulation, privatization, incessant hike in fuel
prices, retrenchment of workers and the so-called
pension reform. 12
In order to avoid the ugly consequences of strike actions, the NLC and
its affiliate unions have always sought to dialogue with employers who they
see as defaulting in the area of the protection of the rights of their workers.
These meetings however produce little or no results, although they are never
short on ideas and theories. When meetings are held in order to resolve any
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given crises, they mostly end with one party threatening to use force to
coerce the other into accepting its own position on whatever matter is before
them. Many a time, employers seek to use arm-twisting tactics which are
meant to force the NLC to back down on its demands. These employerseither go to court praying that the court grant an injunction stopping the
NLC from embarking on a proposed industrial action, or they offer the
cause and effect option: If the NLCs demands are to be met, workers will
have to be retrenched.13 In January 2004, when the NLC planned to picket
banks for carrying out anti-labour policies, the banks resolved that if the
NLCs demands were to be met, 20,000 workers would inevitably lose their
jobs.
In such a situation, the NLC often opts for industrial action, as it
claims that the employers of labour always turn to cheap blackmail in order
to get their way. Consequently, the NLC sensitizes its members to come out
en mass for the picketing of such companies. Most times such actions
produce immediate results. The employers seek a compromise which they
can work out with the NLC. For example, when in March 2004 the NLC
made plans to picket 53 banks over non-unionization of their employees
especially the non-recognition of the National Union of Banks, Insurance
and Finance Institutions Employees (NUBUIFIE) and the Association of
Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and other Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI)
the management of the banks resolved to recognize NUBUIFIE and
ASSBIFI as appropriate unions to organize employees in the bankingindustry,14 although systematically, the adjustment would be made. In
response to this, the NLC suspended its planned picketing of the banks,
although it warned that it would not hesitate to resume actions against any
bank that failed to honour the agreement reached.
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THE POLICY OF OUT-SOURCING OF WORKERS.
An out-sourced worker is one who is recruited by a primary employer
(called the labour contractor), and supplied to the secondary employer at a
fee not known to the worker. This worker does not negotiate with the
employer as he is left with the decision to either take the job or leave it. The
liaison between the worker and the employer is usually the labour
contractor. Most times, these labour contractors may have retired form the
services of the secondary employers. He is paid a negotiated fee determined
by the employer and himself. It is not surprising that many times, the fee
paid these labour contractors are part of the money that should have gone to
the employee.
According to Owei Lakemfa, NLCs Head of Information., these out-sourced workers are not seen as full workers by the companies that employ
them and so can be fired any day. He complained that these workers are
guaranteed a job depending on how long the employers terms of contract
with the labour contractors specifies.15
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There really has not been any major face-off between the NLC and the
employers of labour concerning this particular practice since everything is
brought under the umbrella of casualisation (which has already beentreated).
Endnotes.
1. www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htm
2. The Nigerian Labour Act, ch.198, pt.1, sec.9, sub.sec.6
3. www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdf
4. Ibid.
5. (Weil 2003; Freeman and Medoff 1984 and Rogers 1999)
6. http://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebargain
ing.htm
7. www.ilo.org/archive/press/pressrelease/1997/unions.cfm
49
http://www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htmhttp://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdfhttp://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebargaining.htmhttp://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebargaining.htmhttp://www.ilo.org/archive/press/pressrelease/1997/unions.cfmhttp://www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htmhttp://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdfhttp://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebargaining.htmhttp://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebargaining.htmhttp://www.ilo.org/archive/press/pressrelease/1997/unions.cfm -
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8. The most potent weapon of the labour union, strikes have been
used to cripple the activities of companies which the NLC suspect
of participating in anti-union activities.
9. www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/html
10. www.redflag.org.uk/news/nigeria/lagos/us.html
11. www.socialistnigeria.org/unions/2003/211203.html
12.Ibid.
13. www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040301news01.html
14. www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040303news01.html
15. Interview with Owei Lakemfa at the NLC headquarters in Abuja.
50
http://www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/htmlhttp://www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/htmlhttp://www.redflag.org.uk/news/nigeria/lagos/us.htmlhttp://www.socialistnigeria.org/unions/2003/211203.htmlhttp://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040301news01.htmlhttp://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040303news01.htmlhttp://www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/htmlhttp://www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/htmlhttp://www.redflag.org.uk/news/nigeria/lagos/us.htmlhttp://www.socialistnigeria.org/unions/2003/211203.htmlhttp://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040301news01.htmlhttp://www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040303news01.html -
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CHAPTER FIVE.
CONCLUSION.
So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their ending.
J.R.R. Tolkein.
This essay has tried to outline some of the major areas of friction
between the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and employers of labour in
Nigeria from 1999 to the present time. It is hoped that this has been done,
even if not as thoroughly as was desired.
This NLC, since its formation in 1978 has been engaged in one form
of battle or another with employers of labour over industrial sharp
practices as the NLC describes them. This has set the NLC on a collusion
course with employers, and often times the government, which has come to
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see and treat the NLC as an opposition party. The NLC however, is
undaunted in its resolve to keep on fighting for the wellbeing of the workers.
In Chapter Three this essay focused on the policies of casualizationand the First Bank of Nigeria (FBN)s policy on couples. Of these twoand
indeed of all policies, casualisation seems to be the greater evil. This
practice is one where an employee is not provided any document which
outlines his terms of employment with his employer. This puts the worker
in a position where he is constantly at the beck and call of his employer, lest
he lose his job. Equally unacceptable to the NLC, and indeed all workers,
was the FBNs policy on couples. Slated to kick off on the 1st of June 2001,
this policy forbade couples from working at the FBN at the same time. To
this effect, couples already working at the bank were given until the 31st of
May 2001, to decide which one of them would leave the bank. Because of
agitations by the NLC, several Non-Governmental Organizations and
individuals, the FBN had to drop this plan which it claimed was as a result
of reorganization and repositioning under a new management, and in line
with industrys best practice.
Chapter Four shifted focus to the policies of non-unionization and out-
sourcing of workers. Next to casualisation, perhaps the policy of non-
unionization ranks on the NLCs list of anti-labour policies. By this
practice, many employers seek to reduce the strength of unions in theirdifferent industries by discouraging their employees from joining such
unions. In their bid to achieve this aim, employers often use means which
are anything but noble and commendable. Different tactics ranging from
outright victimization and disengagement from work of union supporters, to
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the subtle but equally potent tactics of either increasing or reducing or
withholding monies of union-supporting employees have been employed by
employers of labour in order to quash unions and their activities in their
different industries. Out-sourcing of workers seems to be the least importantand practiced of all anti-labour practices as defined by the NLC, as very
little is said about it. Most times, it is mentioned in passing by the NLC
when it is dealing with the problem of casualisation of workers.
The NLC has, many times, responded to the employers
implementation of these policies by embarking on industrial actions,
claiming that all efforts to resolve the problems with the employers have
proved abortive. Although these actions normally produce the desired
results at least to some extent, it is not always without some cost to the
employees, and even the nation. Many a time, because of these industrial
actions, the nations economic activities are brought to a near stand-still. At
other times, many people either lose their jobs or their lives. Indeed, strike
actions are never without casualties on both sides.
In an opinion poll taken by the British Broadcasting Cooperation
(BBC), there were a diversity of views as to whether the strike actions
embarked on by the NLC can solve the problems it has with the employers
of labour in Nigeria. Among the many views expressed, people pointed to
the governments insensitivity as a major source of encouragement toemployers (of which government is one) to continue in their anti-labour
policies. These people suggest that the fates of the workers are sealed
because of the policies and disposition of the government in power
(pronounced President Olusegun Obasanjo). Strikes therefore, seem to be
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both ideal, and not needed. These people argue that strikes are needed in
order to keep the government on its toes all the time. However, on the other
hand, since government seems to be oblivious to the plight of Nigerians,
they argue that strikes serve no purpose, but only increase the sufferings ofthe Nigerian workers.
This writer supports none of the argument entirely, but suggests
rather, that whether strikes are to be employed to get the attention of the
employers or not depends on the nature of the situation at hand. This writer
believes that as an organization in a democratic setting, the first option open
to the NLC in the settling of an industrial dispute should be that of dialogue
with affected parties. This will help each party to hear and ponder over the
views of the other in a peaceful atmosphere. When this fails, as it almost
always does in Nigeria, this writer believes that the NLC should, by all
means, embark on an industrial action if it is the only option that will bring
the plight of the workers to the attention of their employers.
Another area where this writer feels the NLC can, and should explore
as it is recently doing, is the area of politics. Since Nigeria has become a
highly politicized country, the NLC should not be afraid to test these waters,
so that it can have representatives in the corridors of power. This writer
welcomes with enthusiasm and anticipation the NLCs support for the Party
for Social Democracy (PSD). It is hoped that this support will go furtherthan paper endorsement.
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) still has a long way to go in
terms of achieving its objectives of protecting the workers rights and
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fighting for their benefits. Yet it must continue, for the journey of a
thousand miles begins with one step.
SOURCES.
Primary sources.
A. Primary sources.
i. Oral Sources.
NAME. JOB. POSITION PLACE OF
INTERVIEW.
RELIABLE. UNRELIAB
Mr.
Owei
Lakemfa
Nigerian
Labour
Congress
Head Of
Information.
NLC
Headquarters,
Garki, Abuja.
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Elder
Linus
Ukamba.
Nigerian
Labour
Congress.
Head,
Administration
and
Organisation;Vice-
Chairman,
Anti-
Casualisation
Committee.
NLC
Headquarters,
Garki, Abuja.
First
Bank of
Nigeria.
Administration. First Bank of
Nigeria,
Industry road,
Aba.
ii. Newspaper Sources.
1. The Comet, 14/4/2002.
2. The Punch, 10/7/2001;
3. The Vanguard, 15/5/2002.
iii. Internet sources.
1. www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htm
2. www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdf
56
http://www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htmhttp://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdfhttp://www.unhcr.ch/html/menus/b/j_ilo98.htmhttp://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/143/bp143.pdf -
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3. http://www.nlcng.org/industrialrelations/policyoncollectivebarg
aining.htm
4. www.ilo.org/archive/press/pressrelease/1997/unions.cfm
5. www.vanguardngr.com/articles/2002/southwest/sw426022004/html
6. www.redflag.org.uk/news/nigeria/lagos/us.html
7. www.socialistnigeria.org/unions/2003/211203.html
8. www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040301news01.html
9. www.thisdayonline.com/news/20040303news01.html
10.www.protglob.hss.uts.edu.au/p_munk.html
11.www.pengassan.org/publications.1.htm
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