CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The human element in the place of work makes the
difference between man and any beast of burden or automation. This informs the
emergence of Industrial or Labour Relations as a field of study and area of
practice. Labour Relations is a fascinating subject, for it is about people and
about people in the world of work. This world covers a vast range of types of
production activities carried out in diverse surroundings in every country. The
terms and conditions governing people at work, and the way these are arrived
at, are the core of Labour Relations, and they are actually of crucial concern
to the people involved. It is they who are not just close to the actions but
immersed in it.
However, it is not only employees and managers “in
a textile mill” who have interest in Labour Relations. The government of the
country has an important stake, in part because it is an employer in its own
right, also because it is the custodian of the public interest in Labour
Relations policies and practices. “We associate Industrial Relations with the
spread of industrialism, a process which began in Britain in the eighteenth
century, with the first industrial revolution. It is topical, practical, and
involves studying the working behaviours of a very large proportion of the
people in any country, namely the labour force” (Johnson, 1983).
The issues of Labour Relations tend to shift from
the question of the size and share of the proceeds of output to one of decision
making:What and how much to produce, who to employ and dismiss, what benefits
to institute, and who shall partake thereof. The problem is who shall make
these decisions and how? Labour Relations is fundamentally concerned with the
complex of power relationships and power sharing, economic and other decisions
which affect or emanate from employment, conditions of
employment and remuneration - between management, the employees (Trade union)
and the state. “The central issue of Labour Relations is how to attain and
maintain optimum level of productive efficiency and how to share the economic
returns” (Yesufu, 1984).
In most organizations the sharing of the economic
returns do not adequately reflect the contributions of the employees, simply
because the managements in such organizations are usually obsessed with the
development of the organization than that of the employees. This has had
adverse economic effect on employees’ standard of living in a typical African
country like Nigeria. “Workers throughout the world particularly in Africa,
contributed immensely to the attainment of independence in their countries. But
today, the greatest struggle is the eradication or alleviation of poverty,
which recently became the campaign of halving global poverty level by 2050”
(The Textile Worker, May 2005). A good economic working condition will make a
good employee and consequently better output. One important way of achieving
this is by wage supplements, that is, fringe benefits.
1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Fringe benefits have become an important part of
the total compensation of wage-earners. “These fringe benefits include those
provided by law, those unilaterally introduced by employers and those obtained
by unions through collective bargaining” (Rees, 1962:66). A labour union
represents its members in negotiations with an employer over all aspects of an
employment contract including wages and working conditions. These contract
negotiations are known as collective bargaining. Where employees are
represented by a union, the employer’s obligation to bargain has been
interpreted by the courts to extend to fringe benefits as well as wages. By
giving employees a united voice, a union can often negotiate better fringe
benefits than individual employees can negotiate on their
on. In the contemporary Nigerian economic society, fringe benefits are important
in ensuring better income distribution for the employees.
Now, if wages are defined (as they usually are) as
per hour paid for and not per hour worked, then fringe benefits include
payments for time not worked. These include vacation, food subsidy and medical
facilities, annual leave, maternity leave, gratuity and retirement, et cetera.
Such fringe benefits should actually satisfy real needs. They are expected to
be widely applied in the organization and there should be effective
communication in educating employees concerning the fringe benefits.
However, one type of the general fringe benefits
that has assisted the textile employee in coping with the impacts of the
economic crisis on income more than any is perhaps the annual bonus. There has
been consistent struggles by the National Union of Textile, Garment and
Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN) to see that its branch executives secure
as much annual bonus as possible. “In the 1990s, bonuses had become an active
issue in collective bargaining” (Aremu, 2001:38)
Bonuses have regularly been won by the union for
its members, that is, the textile employees. But how far these have gone in
improving the economic condition of its members is the concern of this study.
1.2 THE RESEARCH QUESTIONS
I.
What level of economic working condition should the
union ensure
its
members attain?
II.
What is the present economic working condition of
members of the
union?
III.
How has been the contribution of
the end of year bonus to the lives of union members?
IV. What other types of fringe benefits are
of importance to the members of the union?
V.
How can the union ensure the
provision of better economic working condition?
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The main
aims of this study are to:
I.
Establish the present economic state
of members of the union relative to where they should be.
II.
Examine the performance of the
end of the year bonus as a leading fringe benefit in the textile industry in
the lives of members of the union.
III.
Identify other significant fringe
benefits and suggest better ways of improving the economic situation of members
of the union.
1.4 JUSTIFICATION OF THE STUDY
The activities of trade unions have drawn attention
to labour practices, economically, socially and politically. The study of the
contributions of trade unions in improving the economic well being of employees
is very significant. The relevance of the Labour Relations system in the
contemporary Nigerian society cannot be over-emphasised.
This research work will highlight some of the
reasons why the benefits of trade unionism should first be directed at the
union members, who are the employees of the organisations. It will also bring
to light issues that are of most concern to a typical Nigerian employee, as
well as better ways of attaining the same. It will make studies in Labour
Relations better understood and appreciated. It will give attention to better
ways of meeting union members’ needs and also ensuring overall industrial
harmony as well as improved national economic growth.
1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The global prevalence of trade unionism is well
reflected in the Nigerian society. Various types of unions represent various
categories of employees. However, because of its representation of a large
number of the average employee in Nigeria and its contributions to the field of
Labour Relations, the NUTGTWN is selected for this study.
The study is confined to Kaduna metropolis, and is
concerned with union performance from 1994 to date. Like the city of Kaduna,
the textile companies located here have employees from virtually all
communities in Nigeria and the city is host to leading textile companies. The
focus of the study is on employees of the textile companies who are also the
members of the union. And end of the year or annual bonus, which is likely the
leading fringe benefit, is the aspect of concern of the study.
1.6 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
This study is not without constraints encountered.
However the researcher is confident that their effect on the outcome is to a
negligible level. These are:
i.
Access to the officers of the
union and the release of the necessary data has not been cooperative enough.
ii.
Respondents. A lot of them are
not willing to fill the questionnaires. Some that fill the questionnaires made
avoidable errors in spite of its simplicity.
iii.
The time limit for the study was
not enough considering how data will be obtained and other necessary steps to
be taken.
iv.
The cost has equally been a constraint.
These basically are the print and transportation costs.
v.
The study materials for research
and research related on this study were rarely available.
1.7 ABBREVIATIONS
ITGLWF: International
Textile, Garment and Leather Workers’
Federation.
LUF: Labour
United Front
NCSU: Nigerian
Civil Service Union
NECA: Nigeria
Employers Consultative Association
NLC: Nigeria
Labour Congress
NRWU: Nigerian Railway Workers Union
NTUC: Nigerian
Trade Union Congress
NUT: Nigerian
Union of Teachers
NUTGTWN:
National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of
Nigeria
NWC: National
Workers Council
SACTWU: Southern African Clothing and
Textile Workers Union
ULCN: United
Labour Congress of Nigeria.
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