The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has opposed the newly approved National Industrial Relations Policy (NIRP), describing it as a federal government strategy aimed at criminalising strikes and weakening trade unions.
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The policy was approved on July 31 during a Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu.
According to Mohammed Idris, Minister of Information and National Orientation, the NIRP was intended to reduce industrial disputes and promote harmonious labour relations.
He noted that the framework would guide interactions between trade unions, employers, and government agencies, while also aligning Nigeria’s labour practices with international standards.
In seift riposte, NLC President Joe Ajaero, in a statement on Saturday, condemned the policy, calling it “shocking and unacceptable.”
He said, “We are in shock that from a catalogue of hundreds of workplace issues contained in the National Industrial Relations Policy, the federal government singled out industrial strikes as its headache.”
He expressed concern over the government’s priorities, arguing that the statement accompanying the policy showed a disregard for the interests of ordinary workers.
Ajaero disclosed that during the drafting process, there were attempts to introduce provisions that would criminalise strike actions.
These proposals, he said, were rejected by representatives of trade unions, employers, and the labour ministry.
He further stressed that such provisions were inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution and the Trade Unions Act, which protected workers’ rights to organise and withdraw their labour when necessary.
The NLC president added, “The right of a worker and trade unions to withdraw their services is fundamental and inalienable.”
He affirmed that the NLC and the organised Labour in Nigeria condemned and rejected the policy, asserting that it lacked constitutional grounding and conflicted with existing labour laws.
The NLC president said that the union remained committed to safeguarding the rights and freedoms of Nigerian workers against any policy that undermined their interests.
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