The growing use of casual and contract employment, coupled with low wages and weak worker protection, is fuelling the exodus of young Nigerians in search of decent work abroad, the Precision, Electrical and Related Equipment Senior Staff Association (PERESSA) has warned.

The union said the shortage of decent jobs was leaving young workers exposed to insecurity, exploitation and digital abuse, while forcing many to consider leaving the country in search of better employment opportunities.

PERESSA, in a statement to mark the 2026 World Day for Decent Work, said young workers were increasingly trapped in precarious jobs where short-term contracts were repeatedly renewed without the security and rights associated with permanent employment.

The association’s National President, Rufus Olusesan, said the situation was particularly troubling because young workers constituted the future of the labour market and should be at the centre of policies on employment, skills development and economic growth.

According to him, young Nigerians are facing precarious employment, wages that fail to keep pace with the rising cost of living, migration driven partly by the shortage of decent jobs at home and exploitation in the expanding digital economy.

He said a worker who remained on a three-month contract for five years could not reasonably be regarded as a casual employee, describing such arrangements as a form of exploitation.

Olusesan said, “A young worker on a three-month contract renewed for five years is not just a casual worker; he is also a slave being brutally exploited.” He said the theme of this year’s World Day for Decent Work, “Young Workers Organising for the Future,” was particularly relevant as young people faced mounting pressure to secure stable and productive employment.

He said decent work must provide workers with productive employment, fair income, workplace security and safety, social protection and the right to organise and have a voice in decisions affecting their livelihoods.

He called on the Federal Government to increase investment in education and skills development, arguing that the country needed an education system capable of producing employable skills rather than certificates without corresponding employment opportunities.

The PERESSA boss also urged the government to pursue economic policies capable of generating stable jobs and reducing the dependence on precarious employment arrangements.

Employers, he said, must end the casualisation of young workers and ensure that workers who perform permanent roles are given appropriate employment status and protection.

PERESSA further called on the trade union movement to intensify its campaign against casualisation and other unfair labour practices, while urging young workers to organise, acquire new skills and demand greater participation in decisions affecting their future.

The union said the solution to youth unemployment and precarious work required more than individual migration, stressing that Nigeria must create an economy where young people can find decent and sustainable employment at home.

It said the struggle for decent work should also extend to broader economic and political reforms capable of addressing structural inequalities and protecting the interests of working people.

PERESSA said the country must build a labour market where young Nigerians do not have to leave Nigeria simply to find decent employment.