Nigeria: Labour Plans Assault On Banks Over Unfair Practices

There are indications that organized labour is planning a massive assault on five banks in the nation’s banking sector over alleged unfair labour practices including refused to allow workers join and unilateral retrenchment of workers without recourse to labour laws.

The onslaught, Labour Vanguard investigations revealed, at first, is targeted at three old generation banks including First Bank Plc and Union Bank, and two new generation banks.

Being coordinated by Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees, NUBIFIE, affiliate, two of the affected banks had been issued ultimatum.

One of the affected new generation banks which recently acquired another bank, has been issued a seven-day ultimatum which expires today over disagreement on the recent retrenchment exercise without recourse to subsisting labour law.

Three of these banks including First Bank are accused of failure to call their subsidiary (In sourcing limited and White Cleon ltd) to order over alleged refusal to allow employees to join union.

NUBIFIE in a letter to the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of one of the affected bank, titled “Violation and denial of workers’ rights, recalled earlier letters to the bank’s management dated 12th July 2011, 26th January 2012 and 31st January, 2012.

In the current letter by the union’s General Secretary, Otunba K. A. Olaniyan, it copied the Minister of Labour and Productivity, General Secretary of NLC, Lagos State Director of the State Security Service, SSS, among others.

The letter read in part “It is obvious that your management has decided to disregard the concern of workers over the issues raised in the letter quoted above. Not only on the issue disregarding the legitimate concern of workers, your management has gone ahead to dare the union by unilaterally carrying out mass retrenchments of workers through arm-twisting of hapless service providers to achieve that objectives.

As a responsible union, we have a duty to ensure the legitimate and full entitlement for workers that have been laid-off, so far, must conform to due process through redundancy negotiation with the national union.”

“In the circumstances therefore, the union is demanding that your management should as a matter of urgency convene a meeting with the union to discuss terms of exit for the affected workers in line with the redundancy clause.

If after 7 days from the date of this letter, your management failed to utilize the opportunity provided to settle the matter amicably, the union would be left with no option than to activate the process for nationwide picketing of your branch network without any further recourse or notice to you.”

Also in the letter to the Group Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of Union Bank and copied the Minister of Labour and Productivity, General Secretary of NLC, Lagos State Director of the State Security Service, SSS, among others, the union said It is highly regrettable that your management has chosen to totally disregard the demands of the union for compliance with the February 17th 2011 agreement.

The attitude of your management in this regard suggests to us as a union that we may have to follow the same route that brought about the signing of the agreement, unfortunately. As a responsible union, we cherish peace and industrial harmony in the industry but, such could only be sustainable when other stakeholders play their role, accordingly.