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Periodical article | Leiden University catalogue | WorldCat |
Title: | The impact of wage commissions on labour-management relations in Nigeria, 1964-84 |
Author: | Gbosi, Augustus N. |
Year: | 1991 |
Periodical: | Quarterly Journal of Administration |
Volume: | 25 |
Issue: | 3-4 |
Pages: | 307-323 |
Language: | English |
Geographic term: | Nigeria |
Subjects: | labour relations wage policy |
Abstract: | In Nigeria, modern sector wages are regulated by the administrative decisions of wage commissions, ad hoc bodies usually appointed by the government in order to review the salaries and wages of workers in the public sector. They are invariably set up during a crisis situation, with the stated intention of reducing trade disputes and strikes. A review of strike data from the Federal Ministry of Employment, Labour and Productivity for the period 1964-1984 indicates, however, that the activities of the Morgan (1964/65), Elwood (1966/67), Adebo (1970/71), Udoji (1974/75), Cookey (1980/81) and Onosode (1982/83) Commissions did not promote stability in the labour force. Rather, their wage recommendations caused conflicts between the private and public sector and increased the overall incidence of trade disputes and strikes. Their purpose seems to have been largely political. By recommending substantial wage increases, they were used by politicians to win workers' votes during election periods. The author therefore argues that wage commissions should not be relied on as a method for determining wages and salaries and other conditions of employment of public sector employees. He recommends the establishment of an effective collective bargaining machinery in the public sector and the creation of a National Labour Board to enforce labour laws in all sectors of the economy. Notes, ref., sum. |