Federal Government and Labor Unions Deadlocked as Strike Looms

A meeting between the Federal Government and organized labor aimed at averting a planned strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) ended in a deadlock on Monday night. The Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, hosted the parley in Abuja but was unable to convince the unions to suspend the strike scheduled for February 23.

Meanwhile, the Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria has threatened to halt operations by February 27, 2024, if the Federal Government fails to implement an agreement reached in 2020. The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, expressed optimism that labor would reconsider, stating, “We are optimistic Labour will see reason and the strike will be averted in the interest of the nation.”

The NLC and TUC issued a 14-day nationwide strike notice to the Federal Government on February 8, citing the failure of the government to implement agreements reached on October 2, 2023, following the removal of the subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (petrol).

In a joint statement, Joe Ajaero and Festus Usifo, leaders of the two labor unions, expressed sadness that despite the passage of time, “The majority of these crucial agreements remain unmet or negligibly addressed, indicating a blatant disregard for the principles of good faith, welfare, and rights of Nigerian workers and Nigerians.”

The unions emphasized that despite their efforts to ensure industrial peace, the government seemed unperturbed by the mass suffering and hardship across the country. After the removal of the fuel subsidy by the President on May 29, 2023, the labor unions reached a 16-point agreement with the Federal Government on measures to cushion the pains of the subsidy removal on workers.

Among other things, the government agreed to pay N35,000 to all federal workers beginning from last September pending when a new national minimum wage would be signed into law. The resolution provided that the wage award would be paid to federal workers for six months, while states were encouraged to extend the same benefit to their workers.

The Federal Government also pledged to make cash transfers to vulnerable Nigerians and provide 100 CNG (compressed natural gas) buses nationwide to ease the high transportation costs.

Hakeem Ambali, the NLC Vice President, insisted that the strike would go on unless the Federal Government addressed “the untold hardship meted on Nigerians by the famous pronunciation that ‘subsidy is gone’ on 29 May.” He lamented that the government had yet to fulfill its part of the agreement with the labor movement.

Ambali revealed that the meeting with the minister was called to review the level of implementation of the October agreement. He stated, “The meeting realized that major parts of the agreement have not been implemented, and the Labour minister expressed her disappointment that the government had not kept faith with the spirit of the agreements.”

He added, “We signed an agreement in October last year that the buses would be ready to ply Nigeria’s road in December last year. We are already in February. I do not think we have seen any bus on the road.”

A top NLC official disclosed that the unions scheduled a second meeting with the labor minister, clarifying that the Ministry of Labour and Employment is an intervention platform and not in a position to make an offer.

Addressing the Second National Labour Adjudication and Arbitration Forum organized by the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association in Abuja, NLC President Ajaero noted that the government’s failure to implement agreements was the primary reason for the lack of positive outcomes in social dialogues. He advocated for a yearly review of workers’ minimum wages to survive the economic hardship.

The event themed, “Strengthening Tripartism and Social Dialogue (including Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms) for a sustainable industrial relation system in Nigeria,” serves as a platform for social partners and stakeholders to promote fair and just resolution of labor disputes, foster harmonious employer-employee relations.

Ajaero criticized the ‘promise and fail’ tactics employed by government officials, lamenting that eight months after the fuel subsidy removal, the government had yet to fulfill any of the 16-point agreement signed with the labor unions in October last year. He called for an amendment to the minimum wage law that stipulates a once-in-five-year negotiation.