The President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has insisted that his organisation has the authority to negotiate directly with the Federal Government without the participation of the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
Ajaero made this known during an interview on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Monday, where he responded to comments by TUC President, Festus Osifo, concerning the negotiation of the proposed ₦70,000 transport allowance for Nigerian workers.
According to Ajaero, the NLC can independently negotiate on behalf of workers based on the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) principle of representation by the majority of workers.
He maintained that the NLC, which he described as the largest labour centre in Africa, has the capacity and authority to engage the Federal Government without necessarily waiting for the TUC.
“We don’t need TUC. It can negotiate along with NLC, but NLC can negotiate alone based on the principle of most workers’ representatives of the ILO,” he said.
The NLC president further argued that the TUC cannot independently negotiate on the matter, insisting that the Ministry of Labour and relevant labour authorities would not recognise such an arrangement.
“TUC can’t negotiate alone. If they are saying, and it is implied, it does not happen. I don’t think the Ministry of Labour or the Labour Authority will allow that to happen,” Ajaero added.
His comments come after Osifo maintained that both labour centres must participate in negotiations with the Federal Government to achieve better outcomes for Nigerian workers.
The disagreement has highlighted differences between the two major labour organisations over their respective roles in negotiations, as workers continue to await clarity on the proposed ₦70,000 transport allowance.
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