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The Organised Labour has called on the Federal Government to begin the process of ratifying conventions 102 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), on Social Protection.
Mr Festu Osifo, President, Trade Union Congress (TUC), made the call during the 2023 May Day celebration on Monday, in Abuja. The theme for this year’s celebration is “’Workers Rights and Socio-economic Justices”.
“We call on the Federal Government to begin the process of ratifying conventions 102 of the ILO, as it is central to the actualisation of social justice and inclusiveness. “It provides appropriate guarantees for workers’ rights to survival during and after work life, and also guarantees access to decent life for many Nigerians.
“It is important that Nigerian leaders understand that without guaranteeing the rights of workers, without allowing workers to win, Nigerians and Nigeria will not win. We are Nigerians; when we win, our nation wins and makes sustainable progress. It is the duty of government to provide the right environment for this to happen. Our nation must lead with a job led growth. When jobs grow, income increases and the economy is revved higher, but we need to protect those that do these jobs,” he said.
Osifo maintained that to protect workers, employers of labour must ensure that the right working environment was created, and frameworks for compliance with laws were established by government. The TUC president however, called for deepening of engagements at the National Labour Advisory Council (NLAC), and expansion of periodic meetings
He said there was need for the establishment of constant tripartite workplace audits that had become inevitable. Osifo also called for the speed up of trade dispute resolution mechanisms in the country. According to him, the organised Labour will soon commence actions against state governments that are yet to fully implement the 2019 National Minimum Wage law.
`This is in view of the rising wave of impunity in our workplaces and the actions of public sector employers, who are owing arrears or salaries, pensions and allowances, among others,” he said. He also said that actions would be taken against private companies nationwide, that had turned their workplaces into platforms for lawlessness and de-humanisation of workers.
He also said that organised Labour was demanding that the privatisation of the electricity sector be reviewed in favour of Nigerians. Osifo, however, said that the resumption and ramping up of the activities of kidnappers and bandits immediately after the elections should be quickly addressed
He also called on the Judiciary to purge itself and redeem democracy, by its handling of the various election petitions before it. Osifo also said the Federal Government should not heed IMF’s advice on Tax increase, or all of its economic advisories, as they were poisonous to Nigeria’s economic health.
“We reiterate our preparedness to resist every action of the government to inflict suffering on Nigerian workers and masses. We will not allow our members to be turned mindlessly into beasts of burden any longer. We will stand together as workers and as a people to protect our rights to decent work and social justice,” he said. (NAN)
