One of the fallouts of the just concluded 111th International Labour Conference, ILC, of the International Labour Organisation, ILO, in Geneva, Switzerland was the adoption of a recommendation on quality apprenticeships as a new Labour standard.

It is aimed at supporting “opportunities for people of all ages to skill, reskill and upskill continuously” in rapidly changing labour markets.

It provides a clear definition of apprenticeships and specifies aspirational standards for quality apprenticeships, including rights and protection for apprentices.

In a chat with the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, Joe Ajaero, he speaks on the culture of apprenticeship, job security, and unfair employment practices among others and indicted the Federal Government through the Ministry of Labour and Employment, for the upsurge in casualisation and outsourcing of workers among other forms of indecent employment practices.

He said “Apprenticeship, especially in the South East area is as old as life. Up till tomorrow, you cannot enter any workshop or similar trade anywhere in the South East without seeing an apprentice.

“Conventionally, even when they don’t have any written agreements after they serve the owners of the businesses, the owners of the businesses take care of them. The owners give apprentices stipends while they are serving and when they finish, the owners of the businesses settle them.

“However, of late we have started witnessing a situation where they will serve for some years and they are left unsettled, thereby creating problems for their parents.

“So apprenticeship is a practice that is traditional in our institutions. However, the ILO’s idea is the payment of stipends during apprenticeship and having them unionised. We were on the same page with employers on this, but when it came to the issue of unionizing those on apprenticeship, employers suddenly changed.

“Those apprentices have the right to belong to the union, how it will work, and how it is structured. These are parts of details that could be discussed through social dialogue.”

Protection of jobs

“The issue of job protection is sad because there are even no jobs. So, what are we protecting? Countries like ours have to capture the number of people that are within the unemployment brackets and underemployment brackets. A lot of people in Nigeria are underemployed. In the absence of Social Security or social safety, you have a lot of people who are unemployed and you are talking about job protection. It is a big problem that we are in.

“It is the same with the issue of casualization and outsourcing. The Ministry of Labour does not seem to have an answer to this. Rather, the Ministry of Labour in Nigeria is even trying to get unions to sign an agreement with employers, legalizing casualization. Those that are casualised or outsourced should and must belong to Union. How long will they remain as casual or outsourced workers?

“To worsen the matter, within a period, probably after every two years or even one year, they disengage these casuals and bring in another sect of casuals. It is something that we will have to look at as a national policy and ensure that somebody cannot be outsourced forever. Somebody cannot be a casual worker forever. So we need a new direction towards it.”

Anti-workers’ union leaders on prowl

Among the primary objectives of Trade Union are to protect the job of members, fight and defend their rights and privileges.

Union exists for members who have jobs and prospective members.

Flowing from that, the recent call by officials of the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions, ASSBIFI, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, NSITF, Unit, for the termination of employment of certain categories of workers, under whatever circumstances is not only an aberration, but also anti-union and self-serving.

The recent agitations by the leaders of NSITF’s ASSBIFI unit appeared to have brought to the fore the political mindset of the union leaders and the drummers playing the music they are dancing to.

In one of the demands of NSITF’s ASSBIFI unit leaders was immediate cancellation of all employments in NSITF done from 2020 to date because of perceived non-adherence to due process.

Checks revealed that these “union leaders” were employed in the same ways, as those they want their employment terminated.

It is instructive to note that these workers being targeted were properly recruited and their appointments passed statutory endorsements from the Head of Service of the Federation, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Budget Office, and the Federal Character Commission, the final approval authority and the President in the case of management cadre as has been pointed out already.

No wonder some members of the union labeled the industrial action of the union leaders as a product of political inducement, dissociating themselves from the action.

Operating under the aegis of Stability Group, comprising no fewer than 3700 members employed between 2016-2023, said it would no longer watch as the leadership of NSITF unit of ASSBIFI hide under the facade of unionism to drive selfish political pursuits, orchestrated witch hunt and mischief detrimental to the collective interests of staff members.

It said “We write you on behalf of the 3700 staff members who hitherto belonged to the ASSBIFI NSITF Unit. We have watched with, distress, dismay and great pain how the present leadership of our unit ASSBIFI and its cohorts have been engaging in anti- union, anti- staff welfare activities by delving into politics and dragging all of us into unnecessary confrontation with the relevant authorities including but not limited to our Ministry, now being managed by our able Permanent Secretary.

“We shall not fold our arms and watch the unit’s leadership and its journey men confront and defy the constituted authority of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, now led by the Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Daju Kachalon who apprehended the internal dispute very early in line with section 18 of the Trade Disputes Act and invited both the unions and the NSITF management to a meeting on Tuesday, 27th June, 2023.

“Whose interest was the leadership representing by shunning negotiation properly convened by the Ministry, certainly not that of the staff of the NSITF.

“Moreover, we have traced the tacit underground support being given by ASSBIFI National to NSITF’s unit. We are therefore serving the management, the notice of withdrawal of our entire membership from ASSBIFI.

“We are doing so under the ILO principle of freedom of Association and Section 40 of 1999 Constitution as amended.

The group explained that the disputed issues were not new and were being effectively handled by the current management more than the ex-while Executive before it and should therefore be accorded support.

“For example on remittance of deducted taxes, pensions and National Housing Fund, NHF as alleged by the leadership, the management showed evidence that our current taxes and pensions are up to date. They also showed evidence of agreed plans for remittance on monthly installment, of the remaining arrears of the 2013- 2017 in the next few months.

Economical with truth

“Our leadership knows that this present management has done its best in liquidating these funds not accrued in its tenure. The leadership knows that the three previous non- performing Executive led by two of the persons funding this insurrection could not achieve half of the strides made in staff welfare by the current executive.

“Our leadership and its cabal know full well that the current executive promised that staff NHF will get to them and in fact some have gotten.

“Besides, on the issue of staff demotion through the merger of Deputy Manager and Manager, we put on record that the union leaders were part of all discussions and even signed the report and request by former Managing Director to the National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission that subsequently froze further promotion for 2021/ 2022 unless the fund reverts to the Public Service 9-tier wage structure.

“They also froze any wage review in NSITF until these two conditions are met. Management on the instructions of the Ministry set up a mixed Committee of Management and our two Unions representatives.

“We were represented and the final report/agreement was sent to NSIWC. Our unions’ leadership followed to the parent Ministry and NSIWC to defend the report before it was implemented and the embargo on promotions lifted. Some of us benefitted from the promotion exercises, and others did not who is at fault please?

“Honest union leaders will seek for another round of discussion on this from management and the Ministry, seeking for a buy-in for a new proposal to the NSIWC. This is certainly not what arm twisting, character assassination and threats can achieve.

Breeding chaos

“We detest the current attempt to heat up the fund, cause chaos in an already discovered plan by the union leadership and its external sponsors to cause the dissolution of the performing management team. We are no morons. The road side talk of signing the report under duress holds no water. It sounds stupid for the union’s leadership to claim they were marched under duress to defend the report at NSIWC, went to the Ministry twice to defend same.

“Has the leadership told all of us that at a time, the then Minister refused to agree to some points in the report including the merger of Deputy Manager and Manager and referred the union back to Congress only for the leadership of the union to emerge with the resolution to defend the merger. Why this deceit and lies now?

“Similarly, the review of wages and salaries has the backing of the leadership which from available records was until recently a staff in the Finance Department. Five members of the union were part of the making of the new wages with the Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission based on the approval to match NSITF with TETFUND, of course predicated on ability to pay.

“Why didn’t the leadership confront them at National Salaries Incomes and Wages Commission? They accepted only to realise six months later that consolidated salaries is not good.

“We wish to also inform all that wages in the public service – from the President to the last man in the service is consolidated including transport, housing, utilities, lunch. Only special allowances are not. Our union leadership knows this, yet decided to incite members.”

Recruitment, promotion

“The issue of recruitment of staff since 2020 and promotion is one that fully exposed the nepotism that the leadership has been trying hard to disguise. The recruitment of qualified persons to fill vacant positions where the existing staff members failed on grounds of competence cannot be faulted. The promotion of deserving staff members who passed exams and turning down others who failed the promotion exam or were not promoted because of lack of vacancies can also not be faulted.

“60 percent of our membership came into NSITF between 2016 to 2023 and ASSBIFI both Domestic unit and National have been ‘swallowing’ our check off dues, of course being mismanaged, misappropriated by the union leadership without accountability.

“Time has come for the leadership, one of whom is in the Real Estate Department in the Head Office to account for about N64m said to have been spent on travels and publicity since they were elected.

There is no basis whatsoever to witch hunt properly recruited staff members whose appointments passed statutory endorsements from the Head of Service of the Federation, the Ministry of Labour and Employment Budget Office, and the Federal Character Commission, the final approval authority and the President in the case of management.

“But as workers in union, do we have the right to dictate to our employer how to run his enterprise. Workers who failed exams set by the Public Service Institute as advised by the Office of the Head of Service were shown their scores. Same for Computer-based tests by Human Resources Department.

“It is therefore wicked and self-serving for ASSBIFI leaders at NSITF to demand that all staff employed between 2020 and 2023 be first sacked and then followed by 2016 to 2020 notwithstanding the very high unemployment rate in the country even when their engagement followed due process. (Vanguard)

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