NECA seeks social dialogue to promote industrial peace

The Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA) has charged employers, employees and the government to embrace social dialogue to improve Industrial harmony in the country.

President of Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), Kunle Oyelana, who stated this in Abuja at the 2nd National Labour Adjudication and Arbitration Forum, organised by the employers’ body, explained that the gathering provided a conducive environment for meaningful discussions by experts from the academia, public and private sectors to share their perspectives on the importance of dispute resolution mechanisms that uphold the rights and welfare of workers while supporting sustainable development and growth for businesses.

He hinted that NECA believes that maintaining a healthy employer-employee relationship is vital for fostering a thriving economy and creating a stable and prosperous nation.

Speaking on the theme, “Strengthening Tripartism and Social Dialogue for a Sustainable Industrial Relations System in Nigeria”, the NECA chief noted that social dialogues and alternative dispute resolution mechanisms are based on the principles of impartiality, transparency, and adherence to legal frameworks which are upheld by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Nigerian labour laws.

He assured of employers’ unwavering commitment to promoting a peaceful and harmonious industrial relations environment, saying, “We firmly believe that maintaining a healthy employer-employee relationship is vital for fostering a thriving economy and creating a stable and prosperous nation.”

In his intervention, the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero said inflation, petrol price and exchange rate will always render wages inadequate saying the present five-year review of minimum wage law is injurious to the standard of living of workers.

“No matter what amount you negotiate in the present Nigerian economy, in the next five years, you will not be able to buy a bag of rice,” he noted.

He said there is a need to review the law from five years to an annual review of wages based on the level of inflation and value of the Naira.

He added: “This is important because people have been coming up to say that if we increase salaries, it will affect inflation but should we leave salaries to be constant while variables continue to grow?”

Ajaero also said that workers are displeased over the poor implementation of the wage award by the government, saying that nobody is paying the N35,000 as agreed last year.

According to him, Federal Government workers are yet to receive their January salary as of yesterday.

Ajaero wondered why it took the president less than 24 hours to implement the removal of fuel subsidy but was unable to decide on measures to manage its impact eight months later.

“It took you 24 hours to say the fuel subsidy is gone and is taking you more than eight months to decide what to do with it and you are telling us to give you more time. It took 24 hours to remove the fuel subsidy but after more than eight months no single CNG bus is on the road,” he lamented.