Economic activities at the Goodluck Jonathan railway station in Owa Ewere, Ika North-East of Delta State came to a standstill on Thursday as employees of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) joined their counterparts across the country to observe the three-day warning strike and demand enhanced salary packages.
All offices were deserted, coaches safely packed, while passengers who wanted to travel were stranded.
The workers in their scores carried placards with various inscriptions including “FG give us enhanced salary and allowance”; “We can’t continue this way we want the standard and improved condition of service”; “Work for NRC and die in abject poverty”; “If railway workers are not important, Amaechi should travel by road to Abuja, Kaduna.”
The acting Chairman of Nigerian Union of Railway Workers in Kogi, Edo and Delta district, in charge of Warri-Itakpe Train Services (WITS), Comrade Festus Akinnbosun, lamented the abysmal pay package of workers, adding that all entreaties to the federal government including national assembly, minister of transport, salary and wages commission for a review for the past five years have fallen on deaf ears.
According to him, levels four and five workers earn about N26,000, level eight earns N47,000, level 10 earns N65,000 and directors earns N130,000 per month.
The chairman said the staff work for 24 hours without any allowance paid to them.
On his part, the National Assistant General Secretary of the union, Comrade Francis Igbokwe, said the workers were desiring a new salary regime that will be attractive to graduates who want to make a career in the corporation.
Some of the workers who spoke to the Nigerian Tribune said the salary proposal was built into the 2021 budget which is yet to be implemented.
YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
We Have Not Had Water Supply In Months ― Abeokuta Residents
In spite of the huge investment in the water sector by the government and international organisations, water scarcity has grown to become a perennial nightmare for residents of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital. This report x-rays the lives and experiences of residents in getting clean, potable and affordable water amidst the surge of COVID-19 cases in the state.
and then