As Nigerian workers anticipate the commencement of negotiations for the National Minimum Wage in 2024, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has sort the understanding of all stakeholders to ensure that it use the opportunity to arrive at a Minimum Wage commensurate with the prevailing cost of living.
It said it has become very necessary for governments at all levels to recognize that life and living conditions are exceedingly difficult, especially for working people in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy.
The President of NLC Joe Ajaero who stated this at the 19th NLC Harmattan School 2023 in Abuja yesterday, said the removal of subsidy on petroleum products has further exacerbated the challenges faced by working people, unleashing severe pain and contributing to galloping inflation and increasing inequality and poverty.
He reckoned that a well-motivated and well-remunerated workforce has a positive impact on productivity and national development.
Represented at the event by comrade Benjamin, Ajaero said “The ultimate goal, though, is to establish a living wage that covers the cost of living and make allowance for some savings by the workers.
“Since the adoption of the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) in the mid-1980s and subsequent wholesale adoption of neoliberal economy framework, there has been a sustained disruption of the social pillars of society through the pullback of public spending on the provision of social services.
“These austerity measures have significantly impacted on the quality of life of workers, peasants and the poor, thus creating an urgent need for collaboration with broad segment of the society to form a formidable force for sustained policy engagement with the governments at all levels”.
The NLC president said, apart from the Rain and Harmattan Schools which are the flagships of the NLC educational programmes, the Congress will make every necessary efforts to ensure that its other educational programmes like the State Level School and the Study Circle are given due attention to make impact on the workers, especially in the states and at the shop floor levels.
The congress president said the theme of the NLC 2023 Harmattan School, “Building Workers’ Skills for Policy Engagement” was apt, given the importance of skill and knowledge in policy processes and engagements.
He said “in the ever changing world of work, as trade unions, we should prepare ourselves to engage with the employers in the workplace and government in the interest of the workers and the masses.
“In order to efficiently engage any policy, whether at the level of the workplace or the larger society, the trade unions must equip their members to understand policy making processes, its implementation, monitoring and evaluation.
“In the workplace, trade unions contend with policy on training, health and safety, HIV/AIDS, gender based violence and so on. At the level of government, trade unions deal with macroeconomic policies, industrial policy, climate change policy and many more”.
Ajaero further said “A very good policy document is not good enough, if it is not well implemented for the benefits of the people or the organization concerned.
“As a union activist, one thing that I have noticed over the years, that is lacking in the trade unions or that is not being done effectively is monitoring and evaluation of our programmes and policies.
“We must develop mechanism to monitor and evaluate our policies and programmes to know how impactful they have been on our members.
“Trade unions as advocacy and workers’ rights organizations cannot function effectively to fight for the rights and defend the interests of their members, if they do not have a handle on how to craft good policies that will take into consideration the interests of their members.
“This is more so, as they will not undertake effectively their primary responsibilities like engaging in collective bargaining, dispute resolution, protection of workers to fair wage, agitate for safe working conditions, enforcement of labour laws and regulations, political advocacy on behalf of their members and the people, if they are not guided by a number of policies.
“The Nigeria Labour Congress as an organization that works with set rules and guidelines, had developed its policy documents on issues like collective bargaining, socio-economic transformation, gender equity, internal democracy, national and international solidarity, NLC and unionism, labour and politics and workers education.
“The NLC Policy Document serves as a guideline to set rules, principles and goals to control the decisions and actions of the Congress. It also sets the framework for Congress’ engagement with the employers and government.
“It is in light of the foregoing that workers’ education which is interactive and participatory is focused on building workers knowledge on issues that are very fundamental to the struggle for the defence of the rights and interest of the workers in the workplace and in the society.
“It is with this in mind that the modules of the 2023 Harmattan School are reviewed to take into consideration the need to inculcate for interaction on the elemental framework for policy designing, implementation, monitoring and evaluation and the need for feedback mechanism.
“In the face of adversity and brutality encountered while advocating for the rights of workers to earn their legitimate income and benefits, our resolve remains unwavering.
“We are motivated to continue our efforts towards achieving decent work and improving working conditions in the formal and informal sectors of the economy.
On the recent assault on workers and their leaders in Imo State, the NLC president said the action poses a grave threat to freedom of association and collective bargaining as enshrined in Section 40 of the 1999 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended and the ILO Conventions 87 and 98 on Freedom of Association and Collective Bargaining, and should unequivocally be condemned by all people of goodwill.
According to him, “The only thing that can assuage our pains is for the Imo State Government to address all labour issues and return the so called ‘ghost workers’ to their jobs, pay all outstanding salaries and pensions and call back all victimized workers to their jobs”.
In her goodwill address, the Director of International Labour Organisation (ILO) Country Office for Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and liaison Office foe ECOWAS, Vanessa Phala, congratulated the NLC for organising capacity building programmes addressing the Impact of Trade and Investment Agreements on Decent Work and Sustainable Development: and articulating Trade Unions Role in Influencing Trade Policies.
She also commended the NLC for establishing a network of Focal Points selected from all affiliates across the 36 states to scale up the NLC’s advocacy and influence on economic and trade policies.
The ILO boss said NLC has demonstrated commitment and capacity to engage on issues on trade, investments, and decent work in general.
According to her, the Congress has ongoing programmes addressing the AfCFTA. In September 2022, the Congress (NLC) officially launched its African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Network with the appointment of an NLC National AfCFTA Desk Officer and the commissioning of Desk Officers on AfCFTA in the affiliate unions of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
“Since the launch of the NLC AfCFTA Network, considerable efforts have been invested in creating awareness on the AfCFTA trade policy among trade unions in Nigeria and building the capacity of Desk Officers on AfCFTA from NLC affiliate unions.
“Some of the engagements underlining the commitment of the Nigeria Labour Congress on the AfCFTA program include the following: Capacity Building programmes organised by ITUC-Africa and SASK (Finland) Needs Assessment Survey of NLC Affiliate Unions on Trade Policies and AfCFTA.
Others were “awareness and sensitisation activities including the holding of a side event on AfCFTA for NLC Affiliate Unions at the recently held 13th Quadrennial National Delegates Conference of the NLC”.
