The Federation of Informal Workers Organisation of Nigeria (FIWON) has urged the government to provide support for decent work that guarantees basic workplace well-being, fair wages, the right to collective bargaining and respect for human rights in the workplace.
The workers lamented that the informal economy, which employs an overwhelming number of Nigerians, remained “on your own”, with no basic social security, health insurance, old age care and support, including pensions, disability and accident support system, as well as maternal care and support system.
The union faulted that extant policies in the direction remained whimsical, tokenistic, and largely symbolic without reaching even a respectable minor percentage of the working people in the informal economy.
They made the call during the commemoration of this year’s World Day for Decent Work (WDDW), pointing out that economic growth on its own was not sufficient to pave the way to a sustainable increase in prosperity for all.
FIWON President, Frances Onokpe, and General Secretary, Gbenga Komolafe, in a statement, said the decent work paradigm as defined by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), is “productive employment that provides a fair income, workplace security, social protection for workers and their families, and opportunities for personal development.
“It also includes the fundamental rights to freedom, equity, dignity and the ability to participate in decision-making processes and express concerns without fear of reprisal,” they added.
They argued that this year’s Decent Work Day comes at a most opportune time when unions in the oil and gas sector have had to embark on strike action to protest the unhealthy anti-union posture of a major employer in the country.
Noting that the lessons from the struggle were many, especially one that guarantees the right of workers to unionise, they said the right has been largely respected in Nigeria, until recent decades when employers, with government tacit approval, decided to casualise and outsource most paid employment in an industrial relations race to the bottom.
The unionists said the scenario had resulted in near slavery working conditions for most workers, with total absence of respect for basic workplace rights; poor ergonomics, whimsical dismissals, low wages, and absence of collective bargaining.
In addition to material prosperity, they stressed that social harmony, an autonomous life, and a clean and intact environment are also essential elements of development that could be jeopardised when the pursuit of profit is the sole objective.
“Rather, it is about qualitative growth that seeks sustainable progress in economic, social, as well as environmental terms.’ Sustainable growth and development that ensures people do not labour under conditions that subject them to stress, social and economic marginalisation and life-threatening poverty without social safety nets,” they said.
They acknowledged current efforts led by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the government to comprehensively address the need to extend social protection to workers in the informal economy while ensuring their voices are heard and inclusive policies are articulated and implemented.
