NLC tells Okorocha to stop anti labour practices against Imo workers
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has called on Imo state Governor Rochas Okorocha to stop the unhealthy industrial relations practices against health workers and entire workers in the state.
This call was contained in a letter signed by the NLC Secretary General, Dr. Peter Ozo Eson addressed to the Imo state governor, made available to journalists in Abuja.
The NLC said that if the anti -labour activities by the Imo state government against workers of the state is not stopped, it may degenerate into industrial crisis.
The union says that the information at its disposal from various unions in the state indicates that despite receiving the bailout funds from the Federal Government amounting to N26.8 billion to offset the arrears of salary owed workers, the state government is yet to do so.
NLC said “Among others, the government is said to owe salaries of 5-8 months to health workers in the Health Management Board, Imo State University Teaching Hospital, and local governments. Also, the state government has removed all allowances due to health workers as contained in CONHESS and COMESS and refused to release check-off dues accruing from ministries of health, agriculture, petroleum and environment for about five months.”
NLC also expressed concern over the suspension of some workers and arbitrary reduction of workers’ salary for no reasons and putting on concession all states owned hospitals and local government health centres by the state government without due consultations with organized labour.
“It is instructive to remind His Excellency that the bailouts from the federal government were meant strictly to take care of the backlog of arrears of salaries and pension owed public sector workers by the state government and not for any other purpose. The idea of denying this category of workers and pensioners their right to be so paid does not only violate the terms under which the funds were released by the federal government but goes against the grain of social justice,” says NLC.