The call was made in a resolution which followed the consideration of a motion brought to the floor by Senator Ibrahim Gobir (APC – Sokoto East).

Coming under order 42 and 52 of the Senate Standing Rules, Gobir noted that recruitment requirements of MDAs and other private bodies which set age barriers “inadvertently excludes and marginalizes skillful and competent prospective applicants from participating in such exercises.”

According to the lawmaker, “due to the high unemployment rate in the country, many graduates spend up to 10 years seeking employment and this puts them in a disadvantaged position by no fault of theirs.”

He added that, “many individuals resort to falsifying their age all in a bid to fall within the required age limit for them to be gainfully employed.”

He warned that “this development, where a person believes he is unemployable can lead them to embracing criminal activities and further increase the growing crime rate and insecurity in the country.”

Senator Bala Ibn Na’Allah (APC – Kebbi South), in his contribution drew the attention of the upper chamber to the Federal Government’s embargo on employment over thirteen years ago.

According to him, the embargo period must be factored into the review of age limit by the Ministry of Labour and Productivity for prospective job seekers in the country.

“I think the motion is apt and timely. The major basis for the Senate to proceed on that request lies in the fact that, as an institution, we must take notice that the federal government on its own placed embargo on employment for over thirteen years now.

“The period that there have been embargo by the federal government in itself should be considered in the review of age limit.

“For example, if the age limit is 23, we must now add the 13 or 14 years of embargo on employment to the age already earmarked for employment, so that the age will be plus thirteen, because it is the government on its own that placed the embargo on employment.

“There cannot be justification for you to place embargo on employment, then at the same time expect graduates to remain at the age they were during the period of the embargo.

“I think in the review, that has to be taken into account, and therefore, the age limit can now be raised in addition to the established age. That should be the legal verdict for the review,” Na’Allah said.

The Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, in his remark bemoaned the discrimination against job seekers as a result of the barrier imposed by the prescribed age limit.

“It is not through a fault of theirs that people are discriminated against. They’ll tell you only 30 years limit, meanwhile someone graduated ten years ago.

“This is a very good motion urging the Ministry of Labour and Productivity to swing into action immediately,” the Senate President said.

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Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, made the appeal in Abuja on Monday during a valedictory session organised for him and the Minister of State by staff of the ministry.

According to him, the new minimum wage is for the lowest of low, that is grade level one and because of that the government is now carrying out the consequential adjustments.

“So, I am appealing to the organised labour unions of workers to assist government, as the load is going to be too big.

“I want them to cooperate in order to get something good for those in the consequential adjustments level.

“I also want to plead with the Manufactures Association of Nigeria, MAN, and the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association, NECA, to get the private sector not to retrench as that is what President Muhammadu Buhari is afraid of – retrenchment.

“This government has never retrenched workers since we came and instead we have employed more.

“So we are pleading with the organised private sector not to retrench workers in a bid to adjust to the consequential adjustment of the new minimum wage,” he said.

He also appealed to labour unions to see reason with employers by ensuring industrial harmony in furtherance of the implementation of the new wage regime.

“I want to assure you that if you do not receive the minimum wage now, you are surely going to receive the arrears,” he added.

Ngige also said that the ministry had restored and forged industrial harmony through social dialogue in several sectors such as the economy, health, education, and petroleum.

He said that since 2015 the ministry had recorded 1,425 trade disputes and complaints.

According to him, 788 of the disputes had been completely resolved while 37 cases had been referred to the Industrial Arbitration Panel, just as 600 of them are still awaiting but at various stages of mediation and conciliation.

He, however, noted that in order to promote decent work and enforce labour standards for the safety and well-being of workers, the ministry conducted workers inspection on 10, 098 factories nationwide.

Ngige said that the exercise was in line with the provisions of the Factories Act 2004, and in conformity with the terms and conditions of employment meant to protect workers.

“We also issued a total of 426 fresh certificates of Factory Registration, renewing 3,718, and amending 37, and revoking 36 certificates.

“Meanwhile, the ministry has developed and published, for the first time in the history of Nigeria, a Nigerian National Profile on Occupational Safety and Health,” he said.

On the delay in the setting up of the National Labour Advisory Council, NLAC, Ngige said that attempts to create budget lines in 2017 and 2018 for the re-establishment of the council, which had not been alive in the past seven years, failed.

Ngige, however, said that recent efforts were successful as it was passed in the then yet to be signed 2019 budget.

“Even though we observed that our Executive funding proposal was slashed by more than 60 per cent making it look like it will be a failed project.

“It is our hope that our successor, the next Labour minister will resuscitate the body with this initial funding for the benefits of all in the tripartite as the existence of this Council will be enormously felt by both the social partners and Government.

“From the foregoing therefore, it is clear we have consistently been fighting to resuscitate this body which is a good establishment that will make for decent work agenda of the employer and employee in the world of work,” Ngige said.

He praised the management and staff of the ministry and the agencies under it for their support and cooperation.

He said that the support ensured the attainment of the modest achievements recorded.

Prof. Stephen Ocheni, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, commended President Buhari for the opportunity to serve.

“Today, as we celebrate the successful end of the first term of his administration, we must all acknowledge and appreciate Mr President for his visionary and purposeful leadership,” he said.

Source:  SAN

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NLC president, Mr. Ayuba Wabba, gave the signal of a showdown  at the end of an emergency meeting of the Central Working Committee, CWC, of the NLC on Thursday in Abuja.

According to Wabba, the protest is against the action of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige who allegedly engaged thugs to disrupt workers’ peaceful protest on Wednesday.

He, therefore, demanded an apology from the minister and the Federal Government over the action it said infringed on the fundamental right of workers to protest.

Wabba called for the inauguration of the board of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NISTF), with Mr Frank Kokori as its Chairman without further delay.

The NLC members were on Wednesday dispersed at Ngige residence, with nine persons injured.

The workers had gone there to picket the house over the delay by the minister to inaugurate the board of the NSITF.

Meanwhile, Ngige has given the leadership of the NLC seven days to apologise for the invasion of his private residence.

Ngige said this in a statement by Mr Nwachukwu Obidiwe, his Special Assistant on Media.

Accoding to him, the minister was consulting on the appropriate legal actions against the illegality by the NLC.

“The thrust of today’s press conference by the President of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) Comrade Ayuba Waba is predictable.

“Hence, we succinctly wish to respond that the sanctity of the provisions of section 37 of the 1999 constitution on the rights of all Nigerians to private life cannot be annulled by an inferior provisions of the Labour Act on picketing.

“The invasion and obstruction of the private residence of the Minister of Labour and Employment, preventing him, his wife, children and families of his personal aides, quartered in the same compound and throwing them into huge trauma, is illegal and inexcusable under the guise of unionism.

“His conduct is arson with a clear intention to cause maximum destruction,” he said.

He added that it was outside the ambit of NLC powers to issue directives to the Federal Government on how to carry out its responsibilities.

He, however, said that plans were on for the inauguration of the board of the NSITF, and it would take place soonest.

Source:  NAN

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It has scheduled a meeting with leaders of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and other unions for Thursday.

The meeting will hold at the Ministry of Labour and Employment in Abuja.

This is according to the Director of Press in the ministry, Mr Samuel Olowookere, on Wednesday in Abuja.

His words:  “The Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, is scheduled to hold a meeting with the Executives of the Organised Labour Union on Jan. 4, at the Minister’s Conference Room by 10:30 am prompt.”

It would be recalled that the labour union had vowed to commence a nationwide strike on January 8 to force the Presidency forward the N30,000 minimum wage recommendation by the tripartite committee to the National Assembly for approval.

The decision followed the declaration by President Muhammadu Buhari to set up a technical committee to consider the recommendation of the tripartite committee before sending it to the National Assembly.

In one of its statements recently, the NLC president, Ayuba Wabba, declared that the only way the government could avert a nationwide strike over the new minimum wage controversy in the new year was to do the needful.

The needful, according him was to ensure the approval and implementation of the N30,000 minimum wage recommended by the tripartite committee set up by the government.

His words: “It is unfortunate that the Federal Government is yet to transmit to the National Assembly an executive bill for the enactment of N30,000 as the new national minimum wage.

“Government’s dilly-dallying on the issue has strained Government-Labour relations with a potential for a major national strike which could just be days away.

“Accordingly, we would use this opportunity to appeal to the Government to do the needful by urgently transmitting the bill on the new national minimum wage to the National Assembly.

“We also would like to use this same opportunity to urge workers to fully mobilise for a prolonged national strike and enforce their right.”

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