From Mustapha Saye, Kaduna
The Kaduna State chapter of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), has vowed to proceed on its proposed five-day warning strike starting from May 17 despite threats by the state government.
The State Secretary of the council, Comrade Christiana Bawa disclosed this in a statement on Saturday in Kaduna.
Bawa, therefore, urged workers in the state civil service to disregard the government’s circular and threats against the industrial action.
She directed all workers, particularly, teachers, local government workers and their counterparts in state government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to disregard the provocative circular.
Bawa said that the warning strike was aimed at registering their displeasure over the pitiable conditions of workers in the state civil service.
She noted that no worker in the state had a secured job, adding that the state government had in April 2021 arbitrarily sacked no fewer than 4,000 workers without following due process.
“Kaduna State Government sacked over 30,000 workers in 2016 and their entitlements have not been settled,” she said.
” This is the time to tell the world that the state government is anti-workers and wants to destroy the civil service in the name of reform,” she said.
She said that all affiliates of NLC in the state such as the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG ) and National Union of Road Transport Workers( NURTW) would join the strike.
Others are the National Union of Electricity Employees of Nigeria (NUEE), National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institution Employees (NUBIFIE) and National Association of Nurses and Midwives among others.
Bawa said that the national leadership of the NLC led by the President, Comrade Ayuba Waba, would be in the state to ensure full enforcement of the strike.
Recall that the state government had in a circular signed by the Permanent Secretary (Establishments), Office of the Head of Service, Hajiya Amina Abdullahi directed workers to discountenance the proposed strike.
