Dispute is part of everyday life and it’s inevitable. The workplace is no exception that is why labor law was created to help resolve conflicts between employers and employees.

In this post we will be discussing on the labour laws governing the workplace , alongside with real life scenarios and institutions responsible for enforcing those laws. But before doing that, let me invite @treasure24, @steemqueen and @owulama

Part 1

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According to our labor law act and 1999 constitution (section 17), which emphasizes on equality and fairness in employment, every citizen of Nigeria has the right to work. That means, it is expected of our government and employers to provide job opportunities and enabling environment for citizens like me to work, so that I can earn a living and feed myself, my family and improve my way of life.

But, one thing I want to point out is that, because the government provides job doesn’t mean is a duty or compulsory for me to work. I can choose to wake up and stay at home all day watching TV and the law can’t do anything about it.

The government can only encourage us to work because it will not only be beneficial for both the citizens but it will also boosts the economy of the country. So, while work is a right for everyone, it’s not a legal obligation.

The law in Nigeria that protects labor rights is the labor act. Think of it as a rule book for employers and employees. As a citizen working in Nigeria, this labor act make sure that I’m paid fairly, treated with respect and not forced into doing dangerous jobs. It also ban child labor, which is why you see police arresting employers sending little kids to hawk on the streets, exposing them to dangers on the road.

My Opinion:

In my opinion, labour law is one of the best thing that has happened in work industry. Bosses that likes to exploit their employees by making them work like donkey and still paying them peanuts, labour law has been able to fight on their behalf.

But with the rise of technology, job opportunities have now taken a different shape. We now have freelancers working from anywhere in the country. Unfortunately , the labour laws do not cover them. Nigeria governments have to find a way to amend the constitution in order to cover them as well.

Part II:

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We have several institutions responsible for enforcing and they include;

• Trade union congress and Nigeria labor congress are unions that make sure the rights of workers are strictly adhered to. They improve the welfare of workers and make sure they work in favorable conditions.

• National industrial court of Nigeria (NICN) are responsible in adjudicating cases related to salaries adisputes, employment issues and sacking employees unfairly.

• Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment are like mediators and arbitrators between employers and employees. They make labor related policies to bring about peace in workplaces.

The inflation rate rose to about 34% last year and as a result of the hardship in the country, the Nigeria labour congress (NLC) and Trade union congress (TUC), started to clamor for an increase in wages and due to their incessant strikes minimum wage was increased to #70,000 across all sectors of public and private enterprises.

The resistance from the private firm was high, many of them couldn’t meet up with the new minimum wage and combined with the unfavorable government policies, had to close down their organization and move to another country. Some contract staffs in big oil companies went on strikes and were demanding for government intervention and NLC to implement the new wage.

When it became serious, the management released some money and it reduce the pressure for a while but when the contract staffs heard what their counterparts in other oil companies were receiving, the strike started again. This time, both the management and the contract staffs refused to yield.

It became very serious they tried to bribe the leaders of the strike, when they saw it wasn’t yielding any results, they dismissed the workers. The staffs filed a petition against the company

After several investigations, it turned out that the expatriates in charge of the oil company had already paid the money for all the contract staff in full but the Nigerians at the hem of affairs had slashed their salaries without them knowing and since they had no way of paying back, they wanted to use their authority to oppress them considering the fact that they are not staff of the company but are contract staffs.

Their luck ran out, the people involved were not only arrested but were also forced to pay every penny they collected from the contract staff.

Part III:

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A company needs two drivers but, due to financial struggles, decides to reduce operational costs. They hire two drivers under "cleaning staff" contracts to justify low wages. The contracts also state that upon termination, the employees will not claim any benefits. Both parties sign the contracts.

Question:
As a lawyer, which guiding principles would you apply to address this situation?

Answer:

In Nigeria, according to the labour law, it categorically states that, job roles are defined by actual work performed and not what is on the contract. The driver can make a case that the contract they agreed upon was to be a cleaner but they were converted to drivers and they wished to be paid their full wages as a driver and not a cleaner.

The contracts also state that upon termination, the employees will not claim any benefits.

Secondly, the labor law also stated that benefits cannot be waived aside, that means, this part of the contract is null and void.

As a great barrister that I am, known all over the world, I will take this case as a pro bono. I will advise them to file a law suit to the national industrial court of Nigeria (NICN) against the company and demand for their full benefits, salaries and recognition of their actual job.

A worker with 15 years of service is dismissed due to personal conflicts with the employer, who claims they have the right to admit or dismiss employees at will.

Questions:

Based on your country's laws, which institution should the worker approach to resolve this issue?
Why do you believe this institution is competent to handle the case?

Answers

This case looks similar to the story I talked about, just that in this case, it is just one person. In such situation, best place to resolve the case is the National industrial court in Nigeria.

Why is this institution competent?

The institution is competent because it has jurisdiction over labor disputes that involves dismissal of employees unfairly, breaching of contract and used the power vested in it to reinstate the employee.

As a lawyer, I will suggest he file a case against his boss for unfair dismissal.