Unions Insist On Ultimatum For Monetisation

Trade unions fighting for the payment of arrears of monetised benefits in the federal service are insisting on their two-week ultimatum if the government fails to pay the affected workers.

The coalition of unions are Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers Union of Nigeria (RATTAWU), MHWUN, AUPCTRE, NUJ, AAEUN, SSANU, NANNM, and NUPTE, which met on June 30 and gave a two-week ultimatum to the government to pay the balance of the entitlements.

Mr Oluyemisi Bamgbose, the National President of RATTAWU, said in Abuja that the union had not changed its decision on the ultimatum and would act if the government failed.

Bamgbose said at a Stakeholders’ Forum that if the Federal Government failed to pay the remaining 50 per cent to the workers, the unions would be forced to take whatever actions they deemed fit.

“If 50 per cent of the monetisation arrears is not paid at the end of the ultimatum, our decision still stands, it has to be paid.

“We are in the month of July now and they are owing us arrears of about five years.

“We are still talking of the arrears in July 2010 and you cannot blame the union if at any particular time, we gather together and say we want to take our destiny in our hands,” he said.

Bamgbose said the conference was convoked to brief members on the position taken by the union and asked: “What is delaying our monetisation payment?, ‘’

He said deliberations on a salary for media and culture sector workers was still in progress, adding that NUJ and RATTAWU met with the Experts’ Committee on Wages Relativity in the Public Sector on Monday over the issue.

“The question that they asked was why the unions kept quiet for so long,” Bamgbose said.

Contributing, Mr Henry Odugala, the General Secretary of RATTAWU, said the various struggles for monetisation and a new salary structure were very expensive projects, which demanded huge investments.

He urged the unions to put heads together toward resolving them.

“We wish to recall that even some of our members were paid zero per cent instead of 50 per cent last year.

“We wish to advise that this will not be tolerated this time around, we have resolved to insist that only what is right is good enough,” he added.

In his remark, Alhaji Abubakar Jijiwa, the Director General of Voice of Nigeria, said there was a need to invest in human capital by giving workers good wages.

Jijiwa said there was no reason why people should continue to work without being paid salaries.

“I want to appeal to this stakeholders forum to join hands with us to engage constructively on the aspect of our leadership in the ministries of Information, Culture and Tourism and National Assembly so that we can together work and see that the money of monetisation is paid.

“We should also work hard to see that the salaries of media workers and cultural workers are properly captured in the revised new salaries regime that will soon come into effect,” he added.

Mr Gbenga Onayiga, the National Vice- President, Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), said the union had not decided to extend the deadline of the ultimatum.

“We are pleased with the progress that has been made on the issue of monetisation.

“We know that the committee is making steady progress and we want to assure our members that the money will be paid in good time but we still want government to speed up the progress because it has taken so long,” he added.

On the issue of salary for media and culture sectors, Onayiga said the union had been meeting with various committees and was pleased with the progress made so far.

“We also want government to speed it up before the end of the year; we can’t continue this way and I want to assure members that we have been working closely with RATTAWU,‘’ he said.