By Victor Ahiuma-Young
FEDERAL government has issued licenses to 298 outsourcing firms within the last one year. They were charged to avoid unfair labour practices and other ills that are against the decent employment agenda of the government and International Labour Organisation, ILO.

Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu, who disclosed this in Lagos, at the 1st Annual General Meeting, AGM of the Human Capital Providers Association of Nigeria (HuCaPAN), the umbrella body of registered/licenced recruiters in Nigeria, said more applications were been scrutinized by the ministry as part of efforts to sanitise the activities of the outsourcing firms in the country.

Represented by a director in the Ministry, Mr. John Okoronkwo, Chief Wogu expressed government determination to ensure that the rights of Nigerian workers were adequately protected by the licenced outsourcing firms.

According to him,  government had taken various steps to ensure that the licenced outsourcing firm operated within the confine of law, saying among such steps included a review the guidelines, conditions and issuance of licences to operators to ensure the creation of decent employment and adoption of best practices in workplaces.

He said: “Creation of decent employment is one of the basic concerns of the present administration. Our focus is on creating a conducive working environment with adoption of best practices. Even though outsourcing is an internationally acceptable practice, it should not be allowed to result into indecent employment.

Some companies lack the technical and managerial competencies to deliver on their objectives to the country. One of the ills of unfair labour practice which is of great concern to the ministry is casualisation which has denied workers the right to freedom of association. Government is putting in place policies and programmes that will promote good working environment and human life.”

The Minister lamented that many of the outsourcing firms lacked both the technical and managerial competencies to deliver on their objectives, arguing that this had resulted into unfair labour practices.

He said government was canvassing for a paradigm shift to accommodate a more robust policy that would accommodate and promote workplace safety and decent employment creation.

While commending the association for taking the initiative to come together under one umbrella to compliment the efforts of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association (NECA), the Minister urged the group not to allow their operations to result to indecent employment.

Earlier,  the President of the association, Mr. Alexander Emedo, called on the Federal Government to initiate policies that will encourage entrepreneurship as well as help employers of labour in the private sector who were operating under unfriendly environment.

Emedo said the global economic crisis had adversely affected the smooth operations of private organisation in the country and had resulted in the closure of business and loss of jobs and called for stronger collaboration between the labour ministry and the association

According to him,  this would help in promoting a happy workforce and also thwart the vices against Nigerian workers such as prostitution, slave labour, armed robbery among others and urged government not to make the procedure for the renewal of recruiters’ license so cumbersome and demanding in order to allow more members into the industry.

He said: “HuCaPAN should have an input in the registration and revewal process of new and old members, as this will assist the ministry in achieving its aim of sanitizing the industry and getting rid of quacks.

We will assist through internal monitoring of members’ activities to ensure that the ethics, standards and regulations established by the ministry are followed by members.

Membership of HuCaPAN and its certificates should be recognized as one of the requirements for obtaining and renewal of recruiters’ license.”