By; BAYO AKAMO, Ibadan.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on has asked the government as well as every Nigerians particularly the workers to rise up and end the on going economic recession in the country.
Oyo State NLC Vice Chairman, Comrade Bayo Titilola-Sodo made the call while speaking at the ninth year of World Day of Decent Work with the theme “End Corporate Greed” after a sensitisation tour of major parts of the state.
The NLC Vice Chairman maintained that the time has come for government across the country to consider Nigerians as the focus of any effort aimed at getting out of the present economic recession.
“We must end recession; we must fire up development again. Growth must return and when growth return, economic development of the nation shall then ensure and the focus is that, workers and people generally should be at the centre of the activities” he said.
Comrade Titilola-Sodo added that “the idea is that we must come out of recession and whatever activities or statements various individuals, organisations and government are putting forward to end recession must put workers at the centre”.
Speaking on the plight of workers in Oyo state, the NLC Vice Chairman said the entire workforce in the state are now saying “no to acts that subject them to inhuman treatment by employers of labour”
“Enough of workers working for 30days and earning what is not enough to feed them for two days. Enough of poor pay. We say no to poor pay. We say no to minimum wage that cannot feed us minimally, we say no to casualisation of workers, we say no to outsourcing, we say no to salary arrears, we say no to non payment of pension, we say no to non payment of gratuities, we say no to unemployment, we say no to no-future for our children, we say no to a bleak future for our nation”
The NLC Vice Chairman said “we want progress, we want a decent pay, we want a decent working environment, we want a decent attitude at work, we want decent provisions and we want to be treated as human beings. Enough of been treated like slaves in our own land, on our own fatherland and in our own country.”
He however gave the motive behind decent work slogan as to create the awareness that people should be the main focus of whatever effort government is making to end recession at the global and national level to get the country out of its current economic recession.
“The idea behind decent work slogan is that people should be the main focus of whatever effort government is making to end recession at the global stage that the world is passing through, the national recession that Nigeria is passing through and the recession that has trikled down to every facet of the nation’s life and fabric”
