By Bimbola Oyesola
Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has charged the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) to support the proposed tariff reviews on vehicles and other charges by the PTML to forestall breakdown of industrial peace at the ports.
President of MWUN, Adewale Adeyanju, noted that this would enable the operators meet up with their responsibilities to the workers.
“We, therefore, call on the management of NSC to give kind consideration to the proposal of PTML and other terminal operators for a review of the vehicle/car tariffs and other freight charges as obtained in ENL, Josep Dam, Port and Cargo, and other terminals alike to enable them meet their obligations to our members, dockworkers, to forestall an imminent breakdown of industrial peace in our nation’s seaports as they are the economic regulators in this sector,” he said.
He explained that the PTML and other terminal operators had recently made a proposal to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council and other terminals for an increment in the vehicle/car tariffs, which, according to them, has not been reviewed for over a decade.
He said PTML and other terminal operators, under the umbrella of the Seaports Terminals Operators (STOAN), has over the years borne the burden of wages, salaries and allowances with management of dockworkers as in saner economic climes.
He, however, said they could no longer do this due to general inflation rate, deteriorating economic condition, increasing operational/administrative costs, high rate of exchange value and other such economic factors.
He said, “Consequent to the above, PTML and other terminals operators have indicated their inability to meet with the provisions of the minimum standard of Dock labour, which they recently negotiated and signed for implementation as was supervised by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and NIMASA; unfortunately, the prevailing situation in the nation’s economy had directly hampered their capacity to implement the subsisting NJIC agreement.”
He noted that as a result of the above and the inability of management to meet its obligations, and Dockworkers expectations, “there’s now rising tension amongst the rank and file of our Dockworkers members in all the terminals, ports, jetties, and all oil and gas platforms.”