Nigeria: Food Crisis Looms in Country

Source from:  allafrica.com Vanguard (Lagos) 4 September 2008 09/05/2008

Workers in the Food and Beverage sector of the nation's economy are threatening to embark a nationwide strike from Tuesday, September 9, 2008, over alleged unwillingness of their employers to conclude agreement with them on a review of their salaries and allowances, raising fears that the food crisis in the country could worsen. Under the umbrella of National Union of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE), the workers are protesting alleged plans by their employers' body, Association of Food, Beverage and Tobacco Employers (AFBTE), to reduce 30 percent and 20 percent salary and housing allowance increment they got in 2006 as part of their bi-annual salary review instead of increasing it. President of the union, Comrade Lateef Olalekan told journalists yesterday in Lagos that the union had since Tuesday, September 2nd, issued the employers a seven-day strike notice to appreciate the suffering and hardship the workers are going through and reach agreement on salary increment. He lamented that both parties as part of the procedural agreement that expired since July 19, 2008 had been negotiating since then but the meetings had been deadlocked severally because of alleged employers' body refusal to appreciate the suffering and understanding the workers had extended to them since the past two years of rising inflation which most of the employers responded with over 200 percent increases in the prices of their products. Comrade Olalekan noted a 14-day ultimatum was earlier given to the employers' body on August 18, 2008 which prompted the management to call the union for a meeting on Monday September 1, which ended in deadlock because of alleged insensitivity to the plight of workers who had to endure the crushing inflation and high cost of living without demanding for economic relief as done by other workers and waited for the Bi-annual procedural agreement review. According to him, the shop floor workers wanted the leadership of the union to order for immediate strike after the deadlock of Monday's meeting, but pleaded that another seven days ultimatum be given to the employers' body to show that the workers are not strike freak. He however warned that if by Mid-night September 8, the employers are still foot dragging, a nationwide strike would definitely commence Tuesday, September 9, as all the workers in the sector are fully mobilised. In the seven days strike notice to the Executive Secretary of AFBTE and signed by the union's General Secretary, Comrade Idowu Yussuf, the union wrote: " As a result of total breakdown of negotiation over review of Salaries/Wages and Housing Allowance for our members, owing to rigidity, foot dragging and total disregard to the plight of our members, it has become inevitable for our members to withdraw their services in protest against your Association's care free attitude at the collective bargaining table. Accordingly, it has been decided that your Association be given Seven Days (7) Notice effective from 2nd September 2008. within which your Association must reach agreement with us on the review of Salaries/Wages and Housing Allowance. If by 8th September 2008. agreement is not reached on Salaries/Wages and Housing Allowance, our members, all over the country, will embark on nation wide industrial action as from Tuesday September 9th 2008." Similarly, the earlier 14 days ultimatum issued to AFBTE read in part: "We observed with great dismay having watched with keen interest, the rigidity and dogmatic style of your Association on her minimal offers on salaries and Housing allowance which did not truly reflect on the economic realities in the country. It may interest you to know that since the inception of our union, agreements with AFBTE are reached and implemented at once and not in trenches as is the case with the ongoing negotiation. The union painstakingly agreed with the Association this time around that the current agreement would be implemented in (2) two trenches, a condition which the National Administrative Committee (NAC) finds it extremely difficult to persuade its members to accept. Nevertheless we accepted this in order to protect the industry and our concern and respect for the employers. Despite this huge sacrifice on the part of the union in accepting the implementation of the current agreement in trenches which clearly negates the principles of our procedural agreement, your Association father maintain an adamant posture on her offers instead of reciprocating the kind gesture of the union, which we exhibited as social partners in progress." "During the cause of our meetings the union always paint the picture of inflationary- trend as at 2006. which stood at 10%compared with 12.5 % in 2008 respectively, which automatically bastardised the take home pay of an average food worker as cost of living has risen to 18.7%. Having regard to the rigidity and violation of the principles of exchange and your total disregard to the plight of our members, it has become imperative to give you (14) days notice for both panics to come back to the negotiation table with a view of reaching an amicable settlement for the collective interest for both AFBTE and NUFBTE since an undue delay and foot-dragging will not be palatable to both sides." Enditem