Bisola David
Huawei Technologies Company Limited has been served with a three-day warning strike notice by the Private Telecommunications and Communications Senior Staff Association of Nigeria due to suspected anti-labor activities.
Huawei is a major supplier of smart products and ICT infrastructure worldwide.
In a letter to the company, the general secretary of PTECSSAN, Mr. Okonu Abdullahi, stated that the union had instructed its members to stop working on company projects between 12:00a.m on May 2 and 11.59 pm on May 4, 2023.
Abdullahi warned that if the corporation fails to agree to the union’s requests following the warning strike, there will be an indefinite strike in the letter he sent to the News Agency of Nigeria on Sunday in Lagos. Due to the lack of workers, he claimed that the walkout might result in interruptions to the telecommunications networks.
“Your company is not labor-friendly and is not interested in peaceful and amicable resolutions of the concerns of our members, so we were forced to embark on this industrial action.
The statement read; “For the avoidance of misunderstanding, until the following are agreed upon with the union, we will not be backing down from the warning strike,”
‘’Immediate recognition of the fundamental right of the employees to freely associate with the union; immediate recognition of the union as negotiating body for the employees on workers welfare. Immediate remittance of membership dues into the union’s account as earlier provided; immediate payment of March salaries of some members of the union, among others. As we look forward to your company’s granting of our demands, please be assured of our union’s resolve to ensure better working conditions for her members, ‘’ he said.
Other demands include immediate regularisation of the employment of union members on the Huawei projects and the involvement of the union in the process. Also, the immediate commencement of appropriate pensions deduction and remittance of same as required by the Pension Act.
‘’Immediate approval of the National Health Insurance Scheme that covers the employees, their spouses and four of their dependents. Immediate enrollment of Union members in the Group Life Insurance as stipulated in the Pension Reform Act 2004, Section 9(3). Immediate commencement of negotiation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (Conditions of Service) for the benefit of union members,” the letter read in part.
Several calls and texts were placed to the company to inquire about its reply, but no response was received.
