Unpaid entitlements: NLC to stage national protest in Ogun Friday

The national leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress will on Friday, stage a protest tagged “Operation Occupy Ogun State”.

The protest, to be led by the National President of the Union, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, is based on all pending labour issues between Organised Labour and the Ogun State Government.

Wabba, in a letter addressed to the state Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun, dated 20th February, titled “Re: Notice of Protest Against Anti-Worker Actions of the Ogun State Government Scheduled For 1st March 2019”, said the decision to protest the anti-worker actions and infractions on the rights of workers in the state by government.

The NLC boss said the Union had at different times called on the government to respect the collective bargaining agreement entered with workers as regards the last tranche of the Paris Club Fund to settle gratuity owed workers and unremitted statutory deductions due to workers and trade unions.

Some of the issues unattended to by the state government according to the Union leader were the reinstatement of the state NLC chairman, Comrade Akeem Ambali and other labour leaders sacked by Amosun.

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Others were the liquidation of about 104 months arrears of withheld statutory deductions owed workers and unions in the state; payment of gratuity owed retirees; settlement of salary arrears owed workers of the Tai Solarin College of Education, Omu-Ijebu.

“Your Excellency, we wish to remind you that the actions of the Ogun State Government under your leadership runs contrary to and undermine Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution which guarantees and protects freedom of association which includes the freedom for trade unions to exist and function freely in any part of the country.

“Furthermore, as you know, the rights enjoyed by trade unions to respect for collective bargaining agreements and non-interference in their activities is further guaranteed by Conventions 87 and 98 of the International Labour Organisation and Freedom of Association. These conventions were fully subscribed to by Nigeria upon the attainment of independence.

“Given the intransigence of the Ogun State government to respond to earlier entreaties by the NLC, Organised Labour in Nigeria has no other option left than to keep Ogun State on an industrial lockdown until our demands are met,” the letter read partly.