Today is May Day, likely to be marked, in Nigeria, by the usual rallies with workers carrying placards depicting work-related challenges and labor leaders making speeches that are mere lamentations while responses, by government officials, are illusive promises – the net result: continuing dashed hopes for the already deprived.
So, May Day will, again, witness no proactive course to alleviate work related issues, in Nigeria, yet each actor, in employment relations, feigns commitment to decent work regime. This calls, therefore, for a rethink on the essence of May Day as a historic event that motivated the vision of decent work.
Lest we forget: May 1st – May Day- commemorates the fate suffered by victims of the struggle for the eight- hour-day-work: leaders of America Federation of labor [AFL], who led a peaceful protest, at the Haymarket Square, against police killing of a striker on May 3, 1886. The aftermath of the protest led to the arrest, trial and unjust condemnation to death of 8 AFL leaders, christened the ‘Chicago 8’. The saga stirred world attention and influenced the 2nd International Workers Congress, held in Paris, in 1891, to adopt May 1, as an iconic date, to be celebrated annually, by workers. Subsequently, many nations declared May Day as a public holiday for workers hence its internationalization. Surprisingly, America celebrates Labor Day on every 1st Monday of September as May Day is considered a historical blot.
In Nigeria, May Day, was observed by workers not as a public holiday until 1980 when the Abubakar Remi’s led PRP administration declared it as such in Kano State, and, in 1981 the Alhaji Shehu Shagari’s led NPN Federal government declared it as national holiday.
Arguably, the power imbalance in employment contract, to the advantage of employer often protected by State laws, makes employment relations replete with exploitation of labor. Such exploitations were common at the wake of industrial revolution and resulted in many workers struggles hence the birth of trade unions. This stirred international awareness on the condition of labor and the need for reforms.
So, the League of Nations, in establishing the ILO, for fair work standard, in 1919, enshrined in Article 41 of the Constitution, that labor is not a ‘commodity of commerce’. Since then, the ILO has passed over 184 Conventions and 192 Recommendations, including the core eight, considered as fundamental, relating to freedom of association and collective bargaining, elimination of forced and compulsory labour and discrimination in respect of employment and occupation, abolition of child labour, Labour Inspection, Maternity Protection Convention, and Tripartite Consultation. So, May Day cannot be divorced from an objective evaluation of these values brought forth by its consciousness.
Interestingly, Nigeria, since joining ILO 1960, has ratified about 34 Conventions, including the core eight. These have influenced national laws relating to: Trade Union and Labor matters, Wages and Industrial Arbitration, Factories and Employee’s Compensation issues. Also are sections 16, 17 and 40 of 1999 [amended] Constitution on Economic and Social objectives and Freedom of Association, respectively. Sadly, work conditions are still devoid of decent work values and industrial relations dominated by cycle of conflicts and ad-hocism that sap organizational cohesiveness and productive capacity.
And the reason is quite obvious: inept orientation and lethargic skills of actors in industrial relations. Therefore is a need to rethink and deconstruction the current conservative model to a new strategy of proactive engagement amongst mutual stakeholders, as change agents.
Today’s work challenges need, increasingly, knowledge-based solutions not brawn, just as work itself has become knowledge-oriented. Without a change in strategy, workers, both as citizens, may be unable to reap the fruits of their many struggles and sacrifices made, against colonialism and military dictatorship, with the hope that democracy will deliver decent work and social justice. More so, with continuing insensitivity, if not incompetence, by those entrusted with public service responsibilities there is no doubt a knowledge based engagement is, indeed, most apt.
For instance what need are struggles that procure legislations, policies or agreements, such as Pensions Reforms, National Housing Fund, Minimum Wage, National Health Insurance Scheme, etc, without the benefits getting to the intended beneficiaries due to personal interests of officials which conflict with institutional objectives and public good.
Therefore, trade unions must focus on bridging the gap in operational attitude and intellectual competence of workers, in work organizations, as means of rising competence and ethical abilities to curb institutional impunity. At the level of trade unions organizations is also the need to retrain and retool officers on new skills and competences necessary to advance knowledge based engagements and refined logic.
Only then can May Day, in Nigeria, become a platform for evaluating decent work values and advocating alternative policy on work based challenges, with workers as active change agents.
Comrade Edeh was the former National President of the Nigeria Civil Service Union.
