MINIMUM WAGE: APFFLON BERATES LABOUR UNIONS FOR NOT CONSIDERING SMALL SCALE BUSINESS OWNERS AND THE UNEMPLOYED
By Mcanthony Onuoha
Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria- APFFLON has vehemently criticised the Nigeria Labour Congress and Trade Union Congress for not considering small business owners and Nigerians who are not in the Federal Government employ before taking drastic actions.
The NLC and TUC called off a nation wide industrial action on Tuesday afternoon having sat at the negotiation table with the Federal Government for days over demand for improved minimum wage for Nigerian Workers and request for downward review of electricity tariff.
The labour unions, on the 3rd of June, embarked on an indefinite strike to drive home their demands. The industrial action which literally caused temporary shut down of the national grid throwing the nation into darkness, and crippling economic activities as well has been suspended for five days.
In a press release personally signed by the National President of Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria- APFFLON, Otunba Frank Ogunojemite, and made available to the Prestige Blended Magazine, he berated the labour unions for always embarking on industrial actions for selfish reasons. Ogunojemite accused the trade unions of not looking the way of ordinary people who are struggling to make ends meet before taking drastic decisions.
According to APFFLON President, ” we are disturbed by the level of selfishness and insensitivity the trade unions have been exhibiting overtime. Why are they punishing ordinary people, small scale business owners by shutting down power supply. Plunging the nation into darkness does not only affect the government because they use tax payers money to buy diesel to power their offices. What of the poor masses who are not in government’s employ, artisans, small and mediu scale business owners whose businesses depend on electricity. At a time like this when some people can no longer afford to feed themselves, a time families are stuck in excruciating economic situation, some can not afford malaria drugs not to talk of hospital bills, a time people are living in hopelessness because of very harsh economic policies, and trade unions are emasculating businesses by shutting down power supply; when there are other ways to drive home their demands.”
“Head or tail, it is still the masses that will suffer, the unemployed and small business owners. If the Federal Government agrees to pay N400,000 as minimum wage, prices of commodities will increase significantly that ordinary people would starve to death.”
“Same yesterday, Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria-MWUN joined the nation wide strike in solidarity with the NLC/TUC without considering the implications. Shipping Companies and Terminal operators will not consider waiver for the number of days the strike lasted, and who pays those charges, does that not amount to more financial burden on importers? Most of the actions taken by the leaderships of these unions are ill conceived and anti people.”
” It’s time for freight forwarders and leaderships of all maritime associations to come together to stamp their feet and resist NLC and TUC incessant calls for industrial actions if at all we revere the profession”
“Freight forwarders should wake up and protect their livelihood, they should save their importers from incurring avoidable demmurage as a result of the strike action.
Over 200 billion must have been accrued as demurrage for the two days it lasted.”
However, labour unions had demanded a higher wage of N494,000 having come down from the initial demand of N467,000 while the Federal Government sticks to N60,000 with a 50% increase on the current N30,000 minimum wage for Nigerian workers.
The strike, which commenced at midnight on Sunday, June 2nd, 2024, was due to the Federal Government’s refusal to go higher than N60,000 rejected by the leadership of NLC and TUC.
Meanwhile, APFFLON National President, Otunba Frank Ogunojemite, in the statement advised the leadership of the labour unions not to compound the problem of ordinary people while pursuing selfish goals. In his words, “these leaders are not fighting for our collective well-being, the labour unions are pressure groups that continue to fight for the welfare of those of them in government employ.”
“The only time the labour leaders come out to mount pressure on the government is when a particular policy does not favour them, but remain in their shells each time government reels out anti people policy.”
