The National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employees (NUBIFE) on Tuesday staged a protest at the head office of Polaris bank in Lagos over alleged violation of workers rights and disregard for labour laws.
The leaders and members of the union, while chanting solidarity songs, expressed their grievances to the management of the bank for laying off of over 40 of its workers nationwide without being paid their accrued entitlement and allowances.
The General Secretary of NUBIFIE, Muhammed Sheikh lamented that the unjust layoffs is a gross violation of worker’s right to a collectively bargained exist package which is also against Labour laws.
“The new management came on board barely six months ago and instead of settling down to look at how to move the bank forward, they started sacking workers.
“you cannot have a worker dedicate the better part of his life having worked over 15 years for the progress of your company and then you wake up one morning and decide to terminate their employment giving them only one month basic salary. That is completely wrong.”
He stressed that any employer, company or organisation which thinks that it can break the law guiding workers or violate due process as it pertains to Labour, the union will wade in to protect it’s members.
Sheikh revealed that the union got reliable information prior to the sacking ,and that it wrote severally to the management of the bank to desist from it or be mindful of due process if they are planning to sack, but they shunned the warning.
He stress that as a Labour Union, its members rights as workers deserves to be protected at all cost and that NUBIFIE would continue to picket the bank together with the national body of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) until the issue is rectified.
“NLC is aware of what is going on, members will be joining us if there is no headway. Our civil society coalition partners are also aware, they are waiting in the wings to join us.”
Olusanmi Eiyitogbe one of the affected workers while expressing his disappointment said that the management gave no reason whatsoever for sacking them. He cried out that he could not even withdraw any money from the one month salary in lieu the bank claimed to have paid.
The management of Polaris bank in its response said it was ready to resolve the issues as it presented a letter signed by the bank’s Talent and Culture officer, Olarenwaju Oyekunle, and General Counsel, Segun Tawoju to the leadership of the union inviting them for dialogue.
The letter read: “Given the cordial relationship that had existed between the bank and the union over years, we are of the opinion that any concern from either party can be resolved through round table. In view of the above, we request for a meeting between the management team of the bank and a delegation of NUBIFIE on June 7, 2023, by 10.00 a.m. at our office to discuss outstanding issues with the view to having a resolution while requesting you recall your members from our business locations.”
Polaris Bank has clarified that she did not violate any law in a recent disengagement of some staff which it said was done in line with the terms of the contract guiding their engagements
The Bank was reacting to a report of the picketing of its headquarters by NUBIFIE this morning by a section of the media.
The Bank disclosed that it has engaged and will continue to engage the union to resolve any lingering labour matters.
The Bank emphasized that a cordial relationship has existed between her and the union over the years and believes that concerns raised by either party can be effectively addressed through dialogue.
Polaris Bank remains committed to fostering a harmonious working relationship and ensuring the well-being of its employees.
Credit: SUN NEWSPAPER
