By Victor Ahiuma-Young
WORKERS in the nation’s Petroleum industry have threatened to disrupt operations in the sector should oil companies refused to put in place Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in their various companies.

CBA is document that contains agreements between management and the employees’ union stating scope of the business, relationship between both parties and the extant labour laws regulating the industry. It is duly signed by the two parties, that is management and workers union.

It could be classified into procedural (the processes) and substantive (actual) welfare and jobs of the employees. CBA is provided for in the extant labour laws, the International Labour Organisation’s conventions and the constitution.
Under the aegis of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG and their Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, counterpart, the  workers called on the Federal Government, especially the Federal Ministries of Petroleum, Labour and Productivity, as well as Interior to impress it on companies that are yet  had  CBA to do so and ensure industrial stability in the sector.

They threatened use two servicing companies in the sector, Barker Nigeria Limited and BJ Services, as scapegoats for refusing to have  CBA and thereby depriving their Nigerian workers their rights.

Speaking , President of PENGASSAN, Comrade Babatunde Ogun, said that the two in_house unions in the sector, PENGASSAN and NUPENG would make it difficult for any company without CBA to operate in Nigeria.

He noted that the extant labour laws in Nigeria, the conventions of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the constitution made provisions for CBA to govern and regulate the relationship between employers and their workers.

According to him:  “PENGASSAN and NUPENG will no longer tolerate a situation whereby companies in the oil and gas industry will be disobeying the laws of the land and turn Nigerians to slaves in their own country. CBA is part of the law and it is also recognised by the international conventions of the ILO and the Nigeria Constitution.

If any company is not ready to put CBA in place, it means such company is disobeying the law and not worthy to operate in the country.

We will go all out to disrupt operations of any company that refuse to put in place CBA, as this is an attempt to deprive their workers the rights to the freedom of association and lawful assembly, and right to belong and participate in trade union activities.

BJ Services lacks respect for Nigeria laws, Nigerians and the government, while Barker is operating without a union or negotiated  CBA for staff , turning Nigerian workers to slaves in our own country, no company will be allowed to do any job in our locations if they do not have a union representatives and negotiated CBA, government, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and International Oil Companies (IOCs) should stop awarding contracts to these two companies, because we won’t allow them do it again.”

Collaborating Comrade Ogun,  President of NUPENG, Comrade Igwe Achese, noted that “there is no way the Nigerian content Development (NCD) policy can be well implemented unless there is CBA in all oil and gas companies, adding that any company that want to operate in the nation’s oil and gas sector must have a CBA.”