Wabba decries social inequality
The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, President Ayuba Wabba has said tax systems have become less progressive and the re-distributive power of governments have diminished, saying one percent of people now control over half of the world’s wealth. He said, “Some 84% of the world’s people say minimum wage is not enough to live on. More […]
The President of Nigeria Labour Congress, Ayuba Wabba
The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, President Ayuba Wabba has said tax systems have become less progressive and the re-distributive power of governments have diminished, saying one percent of people now control over half of the world’s wealth.
He said, “Some 84% of the world’s people say minimum wage is not enough to live on. More than 70% of the world’s people have little or no social protection.”
Wabba stated this in the address he delivered at the 18th Congress of the Italian General Confederation of Labour (CGIL) held recently in Italy.
Wabba who is the current President of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), noted that in curbing inequality, it would require pressure on employers – especially through collective bargaining, and on politicians, who must regulate the global economy and create the space for unions to bargain with employers and give workers a voice and a say.
He urged the union to further reinvigorate the social contract that allowed unions to create a better life for working people.
Wabba said: “We insisted on the regulation of economic power and the redistribution of wealth and influence. We must make sure that working people are put first, not profits. All of that will require political struggle, but it must also mean social dialogue and bargaining. Bargaining for equality and redistribution, bargaining for justice and just transition, bargaining for shorter working weeks, better pensions, safer working lives. These conditions don’t exist in too many countries and there we expect tri-partite dialogue but in it is a sense Government must respect ILO standards and protect their people.”
The ITUC has over 200 million members who are affiliated to about 331 national centres around the world.