workers are not slaves

NLC to govs: workers are not slaves

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Workers are not slave and should not be treated as such Vice President of Industrial Global Union, Comrade Isa Aremu, has told defaulting governors.

He said the conditions under which most governors have subjected workers across the nation is akin to modern slavery.

Aremu told our correspondent exclusively in Abuja that workers are entitled to being paid as at when due, saying governors are not doing them any favour by paying.

The General Secretary of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria and member of the National Executive Council of the Nigerian Labour Congress(NLC) said:  “The difference between slaves and workers is that slaves are not paid while workers are paid as and when due.

“We are not running a slave kingdom but a Federal Republic based on the 1999 Constitution that recognises the need to pay workers as and when due, emphasising the dignity of Labour.

“I think that defaulting governors should learn from their colleagues that are paying with Paris Club or not. Some Governors have been paying their workers as at when due.”

On why governors should pay promptly, he stated: “Recently, the World Bank released statistics about states that are doing well in terms of businesses and they all include states that are paying their workers as and when due.

“Payment of workers’ salaries is good economics and is good for economic recovery.

“In any case, what do workers do with their salaries? They buy basic goods, pay rent, buy food, pay the school fees of their children. So, it is also good to run the economy well by paying.

“If you don’t pay, you are also under developing your state.

“Above all, it is a fundamental right which is not negotiable and should not be tied to whether they release Paris club refund or not. None of these Governors will tell you that their salaries are tied to Paris club refund.”

He went on: “Every worker, right from the President to the Governors to the cleaner, is entitled to his pay.

“We have to find a way to let them understand the challenge of governance with respect to the payment of the workforce.

“Our governors should also know that they not just employers of Labour. They are government to enforce Nigeria Labour laws.

“They are supposed to make sure that private employers pay as and when due and if they don’t pay, they should sanction the, based on the law.”