Controversial ‘no work, no pay’ FG White Paper

“But when workers go on strike, the principle of ‘No work, no pay’ will also be applied because that principle is enshrined in that same Section 43 of the Labour Act. That section says for the period a worker withdraws his services, government or his employers are not entitled to pay and the period for which they were absent will not count as part of his pensionable period in the public service.”

—Labour and Employment Minister, Dr. Chris Ngige, while addressing journalists after the FEC meeting on October 16, 2018

Another industrial unrest is brewing! This is the consequence of last Wednesday’s adoption of the draft White Paper enforcing the ‘No work, no pay’ rule by the Federal Executive Council.  According to the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Chris Ngige, the decision was in compliance with Section 43 of the Labour Act which he said the National Industrial Court had earlier upheld. The draft White Paper was allegedly submitted by a 10-man committee that the minister chaired which he said was constituted in 2017 to come up with a White Paper on an earlier technical committee report meant to stem the tide of industrial disputes in the country.

He said following the approval of the White Paper, the council ordered that it should be gazetted. A sub-section of the Section 43 of Labour Act also prohibits locking out workers without following due process. Ngige said following the approval, the Federal Government would take action against any employer who locks out their workers by ensuring that every due benefit for such workers during the period of the lock-out is paid to them.

He also said the White Paper banned the idea of government employees leaving their primary jobs to serve full time in labour unions and remain there for life forgetting that they were first employed as public officers. According to him, the White Paper will check this trend by henceforth ensuring that trade unions submit their constitutions to the government which he said must spell out term limits for labour leaders that must not exceed two terms.

In addition, the White Paper fixed seven years of training for resident doctors. It was discovered that some medical doctors go for resident training only to join professional bodies and become permanent unionists in contrast to the rule. Furthermore, the White Paper seeks to end situations where after collective bargain, one group begins to circulate fake information that was not contained in the resolution reached at the meeting. In order to put paid to this misdemeanour, “government therefore says all collective agreements must be authenticated by the rightful authorities and domiciled with the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.”

In a swift reaction over the weekend,  Nigerian labour unions described the “No work no pay” policy as an attempt by government to intimidate the trade union movement and its leadership to subjugate the will of Nigerian workers over the national minimum wage. The unions, in a joint statement signed by Mr Ayuba Wabba, President, Nigeria Labour Congress;   Mr Bobboi Bala Kaigama, President, Trade Union Congress and Mr. Joe Ajaero, noted that if nothing was responsibly done by the Federal Government to meet their demands, they would proceed on an industrial action by Monday, November 6, 2018.

Last Monday, October 22, 2018, I had the privilege of weighing in on this controversial White Paper aimed at enforcing the “No work, no pay” rule on a magazine programme of the Nigerian Television Authority named, ‘Good Morning Nigeria’. I was one of the four panelists assembled to discuss the policy. There was the Director, Trade Union Services and Industrial Relations, Mrs. Omoabie Udeme Akpan, from the Ministry of Labour and Employment, a Professor of Law from the University of Benin, Richard Idubor and the First Vice President of Trade Union Congress, Sunday Olusoji Salako.

As said on the programme, my take on this issue is that though government had a noble intention in coming up with the White Paper, it is doing the right thing at the wrong time. There is no gainsaying that there is a need for government at all levels to rein in workers whom it seems have the penchant for going on reckless and senseless strike actions at the least provocation. Trillions of naira are annually lost to strike actions by different labour unions in Nigeria. Aside from monetary loss, there is also the social cost, productive man-hours loss, uncountable deaths discomfort and inconveniences foisted on innocent Nigerians by the labour unions.

In 2016, I lost my younger sister to the cold hands of death as a result of forceful eviction by the University College Hospital of Ibadan authorities arising from a one-week warning strike embarked upon by the hospital’s resident doctors.  She was being stabilised for surgery for a heart related ailment. She died barely five days after that forceful ejection from the hospital.

Be that as it may, oftentimes, labour unions embark on strike as a last resort after government or concerned authorities might have failed to meet the unions’ demands. Among the triggers of strike actions are poor working  conditions, breach of collective agreement, unjust sacking of workers, casualisation, as well as non-payment of workers emoluments – salaries, bonuses, allowances and all due entitlements of workers.

A labourer deserves his wages, so says the Holy Bible. Nigerian workers are at present faced with non-payment of salaries over a prolonged period. I have been a victim of that for about nine months in 2001/2002. It is a fact that despite the several bailouts and Paris Club refunds given to states by the Buhari administration, many of them are still owing workers’ salaries and allowances.  Will it be fair to Nigerian workers to continue to work without pay? The resort to strike by many labour unions is meant to pressure the government to act responsibly.

I have said on different platforms and at workshops that corruption will continue to thrive in as much as government and other employers of labour treat the welfare of their workers with levity. The plight of Nigerian workers is very heartrending. Whether in the public or private sector, Nigerian wealth creators are faced with inclement working environment, and are worse off at retirement as their entitlements – pension and gratuity – are often not paid as and when due. My late father was a victim of this inhuman treatment in the 1990s. He retired from teaching service in 1995 and didn’t get his retirement benefits until his death in June 1998. Thus, when I read about corrupt workers, I know that some could have taken to sharp practices and malpractices due to pressure to make ends meet and provide for post-retirement.

To be fair to workers, any of them being owed up to three months should have a right to down tools and be paid for the period of the strike. While it is true that the principle of natural justice, equity and fair play dictates that he who does not work should not get paid, there should be exemption to that rule. Where workers are willing and ready to work but the employer is unwilling to provide conducive work environment, workers should not be victimised for lack of productivity. I do hope the government will do the needful to avert another round of industrial unrest as threatened by the workers. As we all know, the economy is fragile and a protracted strike at this point may move us back to recession.