The Nigeria Labour Congress has advised the Federal Government to exercise caution in implementing the Steve Orosaye Committee report on the merger of Ministries, Department and Agencies.
The President of NLC, Ayuba Wabba, gave the advice an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Thursday.
Wabba said the labour movement would resist any attempt to indiscriminately impose job losses in the country.
He said: “The idea to merge MDAs will not serve any purpose because if its intention is for the purposes of relieving people of their jobs, then it will now become unproductive.
“Labour will certainly not support such an idea because of the social and security implications associated with it.
“Any worker you are relieving of job considering the size of unemployment market in the country will affect not less than 10 people who are dependent on the worker.”
Wabba called on politicians to show considerations to realities in the country, adding that such considerations would help redirect their thinking to the challenges of the system.
He said: “Invariably, when you merge and you want to relieve workers of their jobs, first of all, you will pay their severance, retirement benefits and also put them on pension.
“It is going to compound our social security problem because of the implications associated with it.”
Wabba said if the NLC was involved in the merger process, it would ensure that the leader of the process of the implementation would have a rethink.
He also cited the National Identity Management Commission as an example of an institution that sacked over 4,000 workers without salaries or other benefits over a two-year period.
He said: “Not a single money has been paid to them.
“Legitimately, they are entitled to their entitlement because they were relieved of their jobs.
“They are also entitled to severance, retirement benefits and pension.
“Two years down the line, nobody has paid them.
“So, is this the kind of situation we want to see in our country?
“It cannot work and we must rethink through the policies before we think of implementing them.”
NAN.