Workers of the Dangote Cement PLC on Thursday, were at the Lagos state house of assembly protesting their alleged non-payment of allowances and unlawful disengagement by the company.
The aggrieved Truck officers marched to the Lagos State House of Assembly Complex in Ikeja, displaying placards with inscriptions such as "Dangote pay our performance bonuses now", "Dangote Cement Plc is a slave camp", “Dangote should pay our salaries’’ and “NLC, please come to our aid” .
In a petition addressed to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, the protesters sought the intervention of the House.
The petition was dated March 2 and signed by Mr Ibrahim Abubakar and Mr Francis Nwusulor, the Chairman and General Secretary of the forum respectively, It read in part: In April 2015, the company announced both in print and electronic media about a truck entrepreneurship scheme that seeks to empower graduates financially.
The scheme entailed eventual ownership of a truck by every successful employee (truck officer), who are able to cover 400,000km with truck.
The workers said that they reached an agreement with the management of the company to be paid a N60,000 monthly each, in addition to a performance bonus of up to N90,000 monthly.
According to them, each of the 850 sacked workers is entitled to a compensation of at least a month salary in lieu of notice.
The protesters demanded that the company’s management multiplies the salaries of each truck officer by the number of trucks managed by him in a month.
They also demanded that the management should meet their pension requirements in line with the 2004 Pension Scheme as amended.
We demand compensation/damages for causing us huge personal costs of relocation and other economic losses, they stated.
Speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the leader of the protesters, Abubakar added: “We are here today to plead with the leadership of the Lagos state House of Assembly to intervene in our plight as our representatives.
We were unceremoniously kicked out of the company after working for eight months in a scheme.
We signed up for a job even though with a small pay.
At the end of the day, we were underpaid over the period and asked to go home without even one month salary lieu of notice.
They are owing us allowances; they are owing us bonuses for eight months, he told NAN.
Addressing the protesters, Obasa said that the Assembly would investigate the allegations.
Obasa, who was represented by Mr Bisi Yusuff, the Chairman of the House Committee on Public Accounts (Local), said: “We will not listen to one party and leave the other.
We will call the management of Dangote Cement PLC to hear from them.
You need to exercise patience because the House is currently on recess to resume on March 28.“Once we resume, we will present your case.
We will ensure justice. Whosoever breaches labour law, law of contract as well as offer and acceptance law, will be brought to book.”
The Speaker, however, remarked that the owner of the company, Alhaji Aliko Dangote “is a respected business mogul and a father who listens.
He urged the protesters to be peaceful as their petition would be looked into and attended to as soon as possible.
DIRECTOR SOCIAL MEDIA
(FORUM OF DANGOTE TRUCK OFFICER)
Nigeria this is a wake up call to all Nigerian graduate....
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteIt's highly inhuman and selfish ; engaging our youthful labor force and dumping them in a total demoralized way let alone a breech of contract. This I don't expect of a respectable national icon.
DeleteIndeed a respectable national icon my foot. Hes lost that ever since I joined the scheme and to see how they've lost value for humanity.
DeleteAm sure this will make him end his employment scams. He will announce to the whole world for his help in reducing an unemployment but little the poor graduates job seekers knows it an eye service from him to the government. Mass recruitment mass sacking after few months
ReplyDeleteThis will definitely put a stop for him(Aliko Dangote) and other industrialist who are emulating him...
ReplyDeleteDangote must stop this bad attitude towards Nigerian graduates
DeleteThe Dangote group has to be accountable to promises made and we have to prove that the brand is not above the Law and justice will prevail regardless of how long it takes the time has come for the Nigerian youths to take the bull by the horn and demand justice from the powerful and from those who prey on the weak... The Dangote brand has to pay all entitlements owed unless chaos shall come to him... The richest Man and most powerful man must be made to pay for promises made until then we would protest until the authorities begin to listen and pay our entitlements until then Aluta continua.. Victoria aserta
ReplyDeleteGod will punish Dangote
ReplyDeleteThe management is so bad with no proper organisation. How can a whole dangote promise what he cannot deliver to the society? We have people that is not as wealthy as him that give charity and empower the mases. So heartless.
ReplyDeleteDangote group management is an epitom of d corrupt practise going on in the country at large
ReplyDeleteThe truth must be told at all cost abt the scam and expose all other capitalist in the industry to quit these evil practices against humanity and workers.
ReplyDeleteThe truth must be told at all cost abt the scam and expose all other capitalist in the industry to quit these evil practices against humanity and workers.
ReplyDeleteIt is highly inhuman considering the rate of damages Dangote group has caused a lot of families. All we want is for all our entitlements to be paid as stated in the agreement form and the offer letter.
ReplyDelete