Working For Industrial Harmony

The 8th National Labour Relations Summit holds in Ilorin with a promise of better prospects for Nigerian workers

Public functions such as lectures and symposia, especially at the national level where top government functionaries are given the opportunity to speak extensively, to a great extent offer Nigerians a vivid picture of how rosy the country can be for its citizens. And the 8th National Labour Relations Summit, which penultimate Thursday drew the who’s who in the labour circle from across the country to Ilorin, Kwara State capital, under the auspices of the Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies, MINILS, was not different. At the occasion were the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Chukwuemeka Wogu; President of the Trade Union Congress, TUC, Comrade Peter Esele and Comrade Issa Aremu, who represented Comrade Abdulwahab Omar, President, Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC.

In his address at the summit which had as its theme, Social Policy, Labour Relations and the Transformation Agenda: Extending Social Protection in Nigeria, Chief Wogu said the federal government, in realisation of the role of industrial peace and harmony in the attainment of its development targets, has been in the vanguard of encouraging dialogue and consensus building as standard procedure in its governance strategy, while it is also committed to regular engagement with industrial relations actors and interests.

Aside encouraging the review of the country’s labour laws to ensure emergence of the appropriate legal environment which supports social protection reforms, Wogu said his Ministry has remained in the forefront facilitating dialogue between employers and workers at different levels, with the aim of ensuring adequate compensation and income security for workers across the country. Besides, he said, the Ministry is unrelenting in its current effort in the areas of compensations for injuries, support for medical care and housing loan schemes for workers.

“Based on our preference for an institutionalised approach to the extension of social protection, we are currently repositioning the relevant agencies under our Ministry in order for them to be able to effectively play their part in this process.”

In the area of employment, Wogu recalled that early this year his ministry initiated a process for mass recruitment of graduates through the Sure-P programme and assured that the ministry is seeking ways of collaboration with captains of industry and corporate bodies to jointly address the problem of youth unemployment in the country.

In his speech, the host Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed, stressed the need for more comprehensive and effective social protection measures in view of the vicissitudes and changes that have attended the global economy and its attendant effects on national economies, Nigeria inclusive, especially in the loss of jobs and incomes.

Admonishing the three tiers of government to be more proactive, Ahmed, who was represented by the state’s Head of Service, Alhaji Mohammed Dabarako, said his administration has promoted synergy among critical industrial relations stakeholders, thereby harnessing the contributions of all labour actors under a labour regime that guarantees regular discussions, consultations and negotiations on important and critical issues of labour and employment in the state.

“The strategic thrusts of my administration on labour matters include timely settlements of disputes, completion of the Labour House for the NLC in the state, and improvement in welfare of workers, among others,” he said.

These initiatives, the governor noted, has made the prevailing labour regime in the state to be a model worthy of emulation by other states of the federation affected by one form of industrial crisis or the other. While appreciating the labour leaders in the state for cooperating with his administration, Ahmed assured that the doors of government would continue to be open for constructive discussions and engagement on matters relating to workers’ welfare and the development of the state.

In his welcome address, the Director-General/Chief Executive of Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies, Dr. John Olanrewaju, expressed optimism that the summit would address the need to evolve progressive social models in which industrial relations actors function as active participants, and where collaboration is embedded in social policy processes. He reckoned that this would go a long way to advance the cause of social protection and development in Nigeria.

He recalled with pleasure the approval recently given to the Institute by the National Board for Technical Education, NBTE, to award national diplomas in industrial and labour relations. To him, the approval was a major milestone, “representing an unequivocal endorsement of several years of painstaking planning and investment on the part of the institute”. Olanrewaju said the Institute is making progress in its traditional activity areas of training, research and publication, adding that the Institute was considering raising the number of workers it trains annually, having consistently almost doubled its intake in the last two years.

Among the seven people conferred with the fellowship of the Institute at the occasion was Chief Theodore Orji, Abia State governor, for his “labour-friendly policies and promotion of best practices in the Nigerian industrial relations system.

—Stephen Oni/Ilorin