Workers’ Day: Any Hope For Celebrations?

Tomorrow is another Workers’ Day celebration across the globe. A day that would afford workers another opportunity to review their socio-economic conditions especially in this period of job losses and global economic meltdown. It will also be a day for employers especially, Federal and State Governments to give some assurances to the workers regarding their welfare.

Workers will equally reflect to ascertain if appreciable progress has been made in their relationship with employers considering the agitation for better wages and working environment.

However, it has always been a strong contentious view of the workers all over the world that the relationship that exists between them and employers is a partnership in which each side has a role to play in order to sustain the mutual relationship for the benefit of both parties.

Since the colonial period, Nigerian workers have confronted their employers for increased wages and job satisfaction while employers who own the means of production prefer to maximise profit. The result is that wages paid to workers in Nigeria has remained the lowest, even by African standards.

However, it was not until 1912, that the first Organised Labour Movement of civil servants was formed to make agitation on behalf of its members. The Railway Workers Union and Teachers Union respectively, later followed. But the colonial government failed to accord these union’s legal status not until 1938.

As the years rolled on, more workers unions were formed and their population increased. As a result, workers were taken seriously as they networked among themselves to stage protests against poor working conditions, low wages and welfare packages.

These trade unions galvanised the workers to collectively protect their common interests, fight against exploitative tendencies of the employers and strive for improved conditions of services.

However, it is not an overstatement to say that the combined strength of these trade unions has the potential to call to order any government whose policies were at variance with the genuine aspirations of the workers.

At Independence in October, 1960, Nigeria inherited a vibrant and vocal labour movement that made immense contributions to the cause of freeing the nation from the clutches of colonialism.

During the military era, organised labour movement was seen as a movement for effective checks and balance for changes whenever government and employer policies were  considered authoritarian and served only the aspirations and interest of the military class, senior bureaucrats, upper class and employers.

In 1978, the military regime of General Olusegun Obasanjo, promulgated a new decree that gave birth to the Nigeria Labour Congress, an umbrella organisation for trade unions in Nigeria. The formation of Nigeria Labour Congress was a prelude to the merger of four different organisations namely; The Nigeria Trade Union Congress (NTUC), The United Labour Congress (ULC), Labour Unity Front (LUF), and Nigeria Workers Council (NWC).

However, after the inauguration of the Nigeria Labour Congress the congress became the Central Labour or sole organised labour union in Nigeria with affiliated membership restructured into 42 Industrial unions. No doubt the Nigeria Labour Congress assumed the role of the conscience of the workers and indeed the nation to fight against injustice and oppression.

As a result of what the Nigeria Labour Congress leadership considered anti-workers policies especially under the military rule the organised labour movement found itself in confrontation with successive Military Administrations between 1975 and 1999, when democracy was restored.

With the return of civilian rule in 1999, there were high hopes and expectations by the organised labour and the populace from Federal and State Governments especially over low wages, poor conditions of service and welfare packages for workers.

These expectations were later to pitch the Nigeria Labour Congress against the Government of President Olusegun Obasanjo. Although the Nigeria Labour Congress succeeded in its agitation for increased wages for workers. The joy of workers was short-lived as a result of hike in the prices of the petroleum products effected by the government.

With the government policy of the deregulation of the down stream sector of the oil industry, prices of petroleum products have continued to be dictated by the international oil market, forcing Government to adjust periodically the pump prices of the petroleum products despite the conditions of the suffering masses.

Despite the increase in the wages of the public sector workers, their living conditions have remained the same due to increasing cost of living, periodic increase in petrol product prices, high inflationary trend and the prices of goods determined by market forces.

The private sector workers have also had their remuneration adjusted according to the inflationary trend. Public sector workers are usually advised to tighten their belt and adjust to the reality of government policies with the excuse that if Civil Servants’ salaries are increased their would be no money left for government to execute capital projects and service domestic debts owed contractors.

Yet the astronomical cost of health, transportation, education, housing and feeding have gone up in three folds especially in the past two years but public workers (Civil Servants) salaries remain the same over these two years. The  Nigeria Labour Congress presented a bill to the National Assembly asking for a casualisation of new minimum wage of N52,000 for the least salary earner of a grade level 01. But as Nigerian workers were eagerly waiting for the passage of the bill by the National Assembly, the National Assembly rather passed and ratified N18,000 as the new minimum wage where most states today are yet to implement this extant law on the new minimum wage.

Today in modern Nigeria, the Organised Labour Movement through the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress have come to represent beacons of hope, very powerful organisations and platforms to confront government policies and employers both in private and public sectors, agitate, protect and fight for increased wages, welfare package, good governance, transparency, accountability and good condition of services in the over all interests of the working class with the galvanised support of the civil society.

As workers mark May Day this year and 100 years of organised Labour Movement struggles in the midst of worsening fuel crisis and racketeering, House of Rep Ad-hoc Committee report on oil subsidy probe, pension billion naira fraud scam, insecurity of lives and properties due to the Boko Haram activities, non implementation of N18,000 minimum wage among other challenges facing the country, The Tide sought the opinions of various stakeholders on what have been the expectations of the workers within the past one year to ascertain if there is any need what celebrating this year’s workers day.

According to the State Chairman, Trade Union Congress (TUC), Comrade Chika Onuegbu,  the TUC has vigorously pursued a policy of workers employment, despite anti workers policies, adding that the principle of collective bargaining has been strengthened, in spite of its limitations.

“The TUC in conjunction with the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress  had waged war on the issue of casualisation of workers. “We believe casualisation of workers are modern day enslavement and we must fight to stop it”.

According to the State Chairman, the theme for this year’s workers day celebration is “Right To Work, Food and Education as Panacea for Insecurity”, stressing that workers will use this year’s May Day Celebration to assess the impact and future of the struggles of 100 years of Labour movement in Nigeria.

Also speaking to The Tide, Comrade Chris Oruge, the State Chairman, Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), lamented the plights faced by the workers in the country.

Comrade Oruge advised workers in the state to conduct themselves very maturely during the celebration and increase their productivity at their various work places.

He called on Government to provide work for its citizens because in a civilised society, government must provide work and social security for its citizens, stressing that the security challenges facing the country resulted from the failure of government to provide free education, food and work for the teeming graduates roaming the streets.

The NLC’s boss added that the organised labour in the state will use the opportunity of the May Day celebration to demand their outstanding arrears of minimum wage and others from the state government.

He emphasised that the organised labour in the state will continue to protect the collective interest of the workers through ensuring that government increase wages, provide better working condition of service and improve welfare packages to the workers to make them more efficient and effective.

He commended Governor Amaechi for all he has done for the workers in the state.

Equally speaking to the The Tide, Comrade ThankGod Chukwu, a civil servant, lamented the pitiable conditions of the civil servants in the state especially over salary payment. He said, “what will I celebrate for today’s workers’ day in the midst of this fuel prices increase and corruption in the country”?

A commercial driver, Emeka Ogbonna, wondered what he will celebrate this year’s workers day for, no house for me and my children, fuel scarcity, long queues at the filling stations. “I will only call upon the government to consider the plight of people and do something by providing basic necessities for Nigerians because people are suffering”.

Also, a lecturer at the Polytechnic, Bori, Sampson Nwaji, said this year’s workers day should be a reminder to the government that workers in the public sector are suffering. “No house for us and we cannot afford to build one now considering our salary package compared to the private sector workers; my salary goes for the payment of my house rent and my children school fees.” Noting left to sustain us, he said.

Philip-Wuwu Okparaji