The federal government has approved the National Industrial Relations Policy (NIRP), a new framework aimed at reducing industrial disputes and promoting stable labour relations nationwide.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced the decision after Thursday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu.
MR Idris explained that the NIRP will guide trade unions, employers, and government agencies, promoting structured dialogue and aligning Nigeria’s labour practices with international standards.
”The policy is a major step forward in addressing the long-standing gaps in how we manage labor relations in Nigeria,”
”With the NIRP in place, the government expects more predictable, peaceful, and structured labour relations across sectors.
“This policy elevates industrial relations as a national priority, deserving of urgent and continuous attention.
”The policy will serve as a reference point for labour laws, union engagement, and conflict resolution in both the public and private sectors,” he added
The policy is projected to boost productivity and strengthen investor confidence in Nigeria’s labour environment.
The policy announcement came amid major disruption of health services across many government hospitals as nurses under the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM) began on Wednesday a nationwide seven-day warning strike.
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The industrial action, which followed the expiration of a 15-day ultimatum to the federal government, has left patients struggling to access health care.
In Lagos, the situation was further compounded by a separate three-day warning strike by doctors under the Medical Guild, protesting salary deductions.
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On Wednesday, visits to public health facilities in Abuja and Lagos by our reporters showed disruptions in service delivery, with many outpatient units shut. Patients were turned away in some hospitals, while others had their appointments cancelled or rescheduled.
While the health sector faces the crippling strike, a similar situation also looms in the public universities. Earlier this month, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) directed its members in branches where June salaries remain unpaid to stay away from work, warning that a nationwide strike could commence if the government continued to delay wage payments.
The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, appeared to have drawn on the new policy on labour engagement when he announced earlier on Tuesday that the government had drawn up a plan to would put an end to incessant strikes by ASUU and other trade unions in the education sector.
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READ ALSO: Nurses doctors’ strike cripple services in public hospitals across Abuja, Lagos
Strikes by workers’ unions have been recorded in major sectors disrupting crucial services just this year.
In June, judiciary workers went on strike against the non-implementation of the national minimum wage and other outstanding pays.
Earlier in April, an aviation sector strike disrupted flights for about two days.
The disputes leading to some of the sectoral strikes recorded so far in the year have yet to be resolved. Some of the unions only asked their members to return to work to give room for further negotiations and implementation of agreed terms.
(NAN)
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