Labour activism in Nigeria: NLC’s resistance to ‘anti-labour’ policies, since 1999

8/3/2019 Labour activism in Nigeria: NLCs 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

[email protected]

Amalgamated Unionof Public

Corporation, CivilService Technical

and Recreationalservices employees

(AUPCTRE)

9 Aje Street, Yaba M.Amaike-President

S.O.Z Ejiofor-Secretary

01- 86637722

[email protected]

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

[email protected]

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/[email protected]

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 [email protected]

National Union of AirTransport

Employees (NUATE)

InternationalAirport Road,

Beecham BusStop, Ikeja

C.C. Nnorom- PresE.D. Fidelis Gen

Sec

01 4963812,08023024991080 33018168

[email protected]

National Union ofBanks, Insurance &

Financial InstitutionEmployees (NUBIFE)

310, HerbertMacaulay St,

Sabo, Ikeja

B.Babayola-President

M.Mamman- GenSec

01862577,08022241239

[email protected]

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

[email protected]

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

[email protected]

National Union ofCivil Engineering,

Construction

Furniture & WoodWorkers

(NUCECFWW)

68, New IpajaRoad, Iyana, Ipaja

H.Adekwe-president

B. Liadi- Secretary

01-804436901 4926393

080-33209208

[email protected]

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

[email protected]

National Union of

Hotels and PersonalServices Employees

(NUHPSE)

97 Herbert

Macaulay Street,Ebutte Metta,

Lagos

M.Osuebi

PresidentF.Ehi-Iyamu

860173,4710679

[email protected]

National Union Of

Petroleum andNatural Gas Workers

(NUPENG)

9,Jibowu street,

Yaba, Lagos

P.Akpatason-

PresidentJ.I.Akinlaja

4706122,5878608

[email protected]

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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19/58

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

19


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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


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

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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



10.www.protglob.hss.uts.edu.au/p_munk.html

11.www.pengassan.org/publications.1.htm

Labour activism in Nigeria: NLC’s resistance to ‘anti-labour’ policies, since 1999

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