NECA insists employers will retrench where necessary

The Organised Private Sector (OPS) represented in one of their umbrella bodies, Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has flayed Chris Ngige, minister of labour and employment, over his threat to banks following retrenchments in the banking sector, saying the threat is reckless, shameful and shows the minister has limited knowledge of his portfolio. 

Segun Oshinowo, the Director-General of NECA who reacted to the minister’s threat, also from Geneva, on Wednesday, said the minister was getting “very reckless with this disposition and comment” on the issue.

Oshinowo accused Ngige of appropriating to himself the power which the state did not confer on him, stressing that “his comment on withdrawal of license at a global forum is a shame and embarrassment to Nigeria.

It is a comment that is “unministerial” and simply painted a very ugly picture of governance and government in Nigeria,” Oshinowo said.

According to the NECA DG, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) regulate the banks and telecoms sector respectively, and they are the only institutions that determine who gets a license and who should be deprived. He, therefore, wondered the legal platform the labour minister was operating from. 

“This indeed is a serious and big issue- decision, consideration of which goes beyond labour administration, which we are also sure they will not be flimsy and offhanded in talking in the way the minister has acted. Could the minister please focus on the bigger issue of working with his colleagues in the cabinet to reposition the economy so that we can return to growth and provide jobs for the teeming Nigerian youths roaming the streets? The minister has continued to miss the point. Our disposition is not ideological or sectional. We have challenged his action on the basis of rule of law, structure of engagement, dispute resolution procedure and objectivity. He also fails to realise that labour relations is not a pedestrian discipline. It has its own body of knowledge, institutionalised practice and nuances. The minister’s comments and action have not demonstrated an iota understanding of these basics. We once again reiterate that employers will retrench if it becomes necessary and compelling and would respect the law in doing that by discussing with the union, where one exists, including paying redundancy benefits to affected employee,” Oshinowo stated.

Ngige who spoke to journalists in Geneva, Switzerland where he is currently attending the international labour conference (ILC), an annual event by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), on Tuesday, threatened banks and telecoms companies with withdrawal of licenses for failure to heed his earlier directive to halt staff retrenchments pending  dialogue with relevant bodies including government and labour.

A number of banks have collectively disengaged close to 2,000 workers citing inclement operating environment including the implementation of the Treasure Single Account (TSA) policy by the banking regulatory authorities which analysts say may have resulted in over N2 trillion being mopped from deposit banks.

JOSHUA BASSEY