The Federal Government of NIgeria, speaking to journalists on Tuesday expressed shock that employers in the financial sector, especially banks were breaching its directives to stop further retrenchment, threatening to withdraw the operating license of any bank or telecommunication company that breached its directive to stop mass sack of workers.
 
The country's Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige, while speaking to Nigerian journalists at the ongoing 105th session of the International Labour Congress, ILC, in Geneva, Switzerland,  warned that the government would sanction erring companies because government had a duty to protect jobs in this harsh economy.
 
The Minister was responding to questions on alleged breach of his earlier directive to banks and other financial institutions to stop further retrenchment of workers pending the stakeholders meeting scheduled for next month.
 
The minister, who spoke after his speech to the ILO National Assembly, said:
“We will go a step further if they continue. We know what to do. After all, the banks have the licenses giving by the government. We know what to do. They need to comply. They need to come to the negotiation table. We did (halted the spate of sack to hold a stakeholders meeting) that in the oil industry and we succeeded. Even if you are going to lay off, there is a way to declare redundancy, there is a process. Section 20 of the Labour Act says it. You must call the unions and discuss with them. You don’t just treat them as slaves in their own country and you want us to keep quiet. “We want them to maintain the statusquo. As far as I am the minister of labour, I will protect the interest of workers; same to the telecommunication companies, they are also talking about compiling lists without discussing with anybody.”

 The mass , some people say, can be attributed to the present Foreign Exchange policy difficulties been faced by such companies and this has even caused some foreign companies to withdraw their services.
 
So i'll implore the government to stop threatening the companies but rather, they should have a dialogue together and look for a way out

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kj

Companies have the right to hire and fire employees in line with due process.

Mass retrenchment is one of the hallmarks of recession. And Nigeria economy is in recession.

Oga minister. Do not bite more than you can chew.

. .

Which kind yeye talk be this na?
This govt is gradually turning this country to a laughing stock by making ridiculously senseless utterances.
If they do not have any sensible thing to say they should shut the fvck up

This government is a joke. The country is sliding into depression and all this government can do is warn and threaten private firms not to lay off staff even when the government is finding it difficult to pay salaries. This is not time to warn or threaten anybody, this is time to role out good economic policies that will cushion the effect of recession before will slide into depression and with all the worst things that comes with it.

Hope the government will pay the workers when the companies start owning them salaries.

Ok

Yeye govt imagine d arrant nonsense by a very useless clueless govt u held Nigeria economy down by ur visionless policy making life hard 4everybody in Nigeria useless govt

This Buhari sef. You've destroyed the economy yet you want companies to pretend all is well.

na by force? tyrants

Are wailing zombies cursed? The govt is reminding the companies of laws governing labor in Nigeria which must be complied with before any mass sacking and they are gleefully boasting and talking about recession. When Jonathan and co were laying the foundation of destroying our economy you were all egging him on out od tribalism and myopic mindset now you have seen the result of Jonathan misdeeds and yall forming economic experts while in fact you are better suited for analysing ogogori production process.

Very unfortunate, imagine the way this govt of Buhari reason. So company who is facing financial challenge should not find way of cutting cost. this can only happen in Nigeria. this man is realy taking us back to 1984, very bad.

If you withdraw or forfeit then you have actually thrown thousands out of jobs.. What gives FG the right to impose on the private sector? This minister self... Apart from the cbn jobs they created for their own children how many jobs have they created for the teaming unemployed youths?.. The financial sector is in a mess thanks to the voodoo economic policy... FG has indirectly made life difficult for businesses.. God save us all..

dadebayo1:
If you withdraw or forfeit then you have actually thrown thousands out of jobs.. What gives FG the right to impose on the private sector? This minister self... Apart from the cbn jobs they created for their own children how many jobs have they created for the teaming unemployed youths?.. The financial sector is in a mess thanks to the voodoo economic policy... FG has indirectly made life difficult for businesses.. God save us all..

Amen o, God save us, The CBN thing is not the only one, what about NNPC too. Nepotism isn't a secret in this country

Instead of him to demand accountability from governors and find out why states are owing upto 7months salary.. My own state governor is owing 6months salary this yeye clown did not say anything... A state Governor stopped the salary of about 16000 workers and the clown did not say anything.. How on earth did we get to this stage with all this clowns..... This people are jokers..