Labour urged to embrace unity

The Nigerian trade union movement has been called upon to rapidly build an inclusive social movement unionism that would benefit all working people and their families.  Such a movement as advocated must encompass all working people across formal/informal, casual/regular workers, men/women workers, private/public sector etc in order to forge working people’s power for change and […]

The Nigerian trade union movement has been called upon to rapidly build an inclusive social movement unionism that would benefit all working people and their families.
 Such a movement as advocated must encompass all working people across formal/informal, casual/regular workers, men/women workers, private/public sector etc in order to forge working people’s power for change and development.
 This was part of the resolution of a workshop held by the Nigeria Union of Railway Workers (NUR) in conjunction with the Community Building and Development Initiative (CBDI) with the theme, “The Nigerian Economic Downturn; Implications for the Nigerian Trade Union Movement held in Enugu between June 6 – 9, 2016”.
 Six other trade unions attended the workshop including the National Union of Shop and Distributive Employees (NUSDE), Senior Staff Union of Universities (SSANU), National Union of Textile, Garments and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTW), National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE), National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) and National Union of Lotteries Agents Employers (NULAE).
 The unions lamented the inability of trade unions to organize a successful strike action, making reference to the recent botched nationwide strike on the removal of fuel subsidy.
“Trade union movement is dangerously succumbing to divisive pressures around private/public sector, junior/senior staff, formal/informal, casual/regular workers and other forms of cleavages resulting in open rifts and for the first time in the history of the labour movement, an inability to successfully carry out a strike action.”
It therefore called for an urgent retreat of all trade union leaders across the divides; the two factions of the NLC, TUC, pro-labour civil society organizations to achieve an all-embracing social movement unionism.
The communiqué signed by Secretary General of NUR,  Comrade  Segun Esan and Executive Director of CBDI,  Comrade  Gbenga Komolafe called for a drastic reduction in the remuneration of public officials to reflect that of the public servants.