The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has warned Shell and the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas Company (NLNG) to stop victimisation and disregard for the union and its members.
Its President, Williams Akporeha, said this in a state of the nation address on Friday in Lagos.
He lamented the flagrant violation of Contract Workers’ rights in Shell Nigeria.
“The gross violation of Workers right reached an unfortunate head when Shell Contractors brazenly refused to implement an agreement they willingly entered into with the Workers since November 2018”, Akporeha said.
“It will interest you to know that, the Conditions under which these Contract Workers are working were conditions set in a CBA that expired since 2016.
“We have resolved to take up this fight and we are putting the public on notice with this Press address.
“Shell Petroleum Development Company cannot feign ignorance of the inhuman conditions Nigerians are being subjected to. These Multinational Companies are appearing so big to respect agreement and statutory provisions and institutions in the Country.”
On NLNG, NUPENG stated that the company was resisting workers’ right to unionism.
“In any decent and responsible Organization, the rights of workers to join the union and collectively negotiate their working conditions ought not to be a difficult one; unfortunately, it isn’t the case with the NLNG and its Contractors, where the matter has become an issue of litigation for the NLNG contract employees.
“It is important to let you know that even after the Ministry of Labour intervention and the Court ruling in favour of the workers affirming their inalienable rights to associate and bargain collectively, NLNG and its Contractors still remain recalcitrant. Some of these Contractors include; WAEP, MIDIS NIG LTD, RYPAC, D. A ENTERPRISE etc.
“Regrettably, NLNG is still going further to circumvent the law by resorting to short term contracts of 3 to 6 months for a permanent job which has given room for high turnover of workers.
“Furthermore, the Union engaged the management of Morgreen Nig Ltd, a local content company in NLNG in collective bargaining negotiation processes and after a far reaching agreement the management flippantly refused to sign the CBA documents based on the directive of their principal (NLNG). This has left the contract employees in NLNG working without any negotiated condition of service in place and with no prospect for career path.
“Rather than NLNG to advise their contractors to recognize the union and engage the union on Collective Bargaining, what we see today is that any contractor whose employees opt to join the union will have their contract terminated. The precarious contract and the anti-union posture of NLNG management has frustrated the effort to Unionize and negotiate a collective Bargaining Agreement for the contract Employees in NLNG, every day Employees lose their jobs as a result of joining the Union.”
NUPENG further lamented the uncertainty and threat on general public/investors safety and businesses is of grave concern to all and sundry.
“We wonder how explosives, bombs and high damage assault rifles gained access into our country and subsequently end up in the hands of terrorist, cultists, kidnappers, armed robbers, assassins, ritualists and other criminal elements in our society.
“Boko Haram alone has killed tens of thousands and have displaced over 2.3million Nigerians from their homes”, the union decried.
“Consequently, a key issue which President Muhammadu Buhari must seriously look into is the issue of saboteurs within the brass of Military, Police, DSS, Immigration, NSCDC, Customs, etc.
“NUPENG therefore appeals to the President to ensure that insecurity is brought to barest minimum so that life will be more abundant and the enabling environment will be more lucrative for both local and foreign investors and compete favourably with other advanced economies of the world,” it added.
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