Unfair labour treatment: NLC write Gov. Wike, demands respect to labour laws, tripartite agreement

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has urged Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, to respect Nigerian labour laws and the agreement his government signed with Organized Labour in order to restore industrial peace in Rivers State.

NLC also told Governor Wike to implementing the resolutions contained in a Tripartite Committee Report carried out with the consent of the State government and the labour.

In a letter dated 5th May, 2022, signed by NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, the Labour centre said; “Your Excellency may recall our letters dated 6th February 2020, 24th March 2020 and 10thAugust 2020 on the above subject matter. Also recall that the events following the afore-mentioned letters by the Nigeria Labour Congress urging you to intervene and resolve a sleuth of concerns and complaints by public workers and pensioners in Rivers State necessitated the national intervention by the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress on Tuesday, September 2, 2020.

“Owing to your last-minute decision to interface with the leadership of Organized Labour in Nigeria and resolve all the outstanding issues bothering on workers’ and pensioners’ welfare, the planned mass action and industrial shutdown of Rivers State was averted.”

The letter further read; “Your Excellency, it is regrettable that nearly two years after reaching a Collective Bargaining Agreement with Rivers State workers and pensioners, the State Government has reneged on the following commitments: Non-promotion of civil servants eligible for promotion since 2012; Non-payment of salaries arrears to civil servants not paid February and March 2016 salaries due to the aborted 2016 biometric verification;

“Non-harmonization of Pension for state retirees; Non-payment of pension arrears, gratuities and death benefits to retirees in Rivers thus exposing them to unimaginable pains and trauma; Non-implementation of pension incremental rates; and Non-implementation of annual salary increment for state workers.

“Your Excellency may recall that a Tripartite Committee was set up to resolve the foregoing issues and present its report to the State Government for implementation. This is pursuant to Article 6 of the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Organized Labour and the Rivers State Government on Monday, 7th September 2020. Unfortunately, till date, Your Excellency has failed to act on the Report of the Tripartite Committee contrary to the agreement reached with the Rivers State Government which by our national laws and international labour conventions has a binding force of law.

We are also amiss at the continued failure of Rivers State to pay the terminal benefits of retirees for the past seven years despite the viability of Rivers State which is at par with Lagos State as Nigeria’s most financially solvent states. The gale of donations to different causes by Your Excellency has not escaped the attention of hungry workers and pensioners in Rivers State who watch as their state adorns the robe of Father Christmas to other states while their salaries and pension are withheld.

“Many in Rivers State now believe that the maxim “Charity begins at home” means nothing in Rivers State. We learnt that workers in the State now go about in black mourning robes and the children of retirees now protest naked in the public. Those are all ominous signs.

“we appeal to the milk of your human kindness and your vows as a revered life bencher to respect our labour laws and the agreement you signed with Organized Labour and implement the resolutions in the Tripartite Committee Report so as to restore industrial peace in Rivers State.”

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