Prince Adesegun Olusola Ogunlewe, recently retired from the Lagos State civil service after 34 years. A prince from Igbogbo in the Ikorodu area, he formally bowed out as state’s Head of Service, HoS. He was appointed HoS in May 2010, a position he occupied for three years before retiring on October 10th, 2013. Ogunlewe, in this interview with Olasunkanmi Akoni, shared his experiences with Labour Vanguard.

NEARLY ten years into the implementation of the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS following the Pension Reform Act, PRA, 2004, none of the five states in the South-East zone has implemented CPS for its workers.

In recent times, the state of the economy of Nigeria has remained a topic for discussion. Whereas those in government insist the economy is on the right track, others ( not necessarily members of opposition parties) have a different view. For the latter, the economy has not recorded any significant growth. So, what’s the key to making Nigeria’s economy viable and visible for everyone; officials and non-officials. The Federal Ministry of Labour believes the key is “ productivity”. It was therefore no surprise that the Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu, launched the National Policy on Produtivity.

ORGANISED labour has warned that inspite of checks against abuses and unethical practices especially corruption in the new Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS, it will not hesistate to declare a national strike should there be any proven case of fraud in CPS.

Trouble is brewing at the Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education, AOCOED, Ijanikin, Lagos, over N48 million pension fund allegedly un-remitted, and N188million perceived ‘missing’ staff cooperative fund.

THE Third Quadrennial Delegates Conference, QDC, of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, in the ancient city of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, will for sometime to come be an issue for discussion. With the theme Reforms in the Oil and Gas Industry: Catalyst for National Growth and Development, (What prospect for the attainment of Decent Work Agenda?), besides attracting local and international guests, stakeholders in the nation’s petroleum industry, used the occasion to emphasize the need for decent jobs in the sector.

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, recently held its International Relations Forum in Accra, Ghana. The theme was, Trade Unionism in Nigeria and Global Social Protection, and the venue was Kwame Nkrumah African Labour College, Accra. Labour Vanguard shares with you, the thoughts of the Secretary-General of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity, OATUU, Comrade Owei Lakemfa and the TUC President, as contained in their addresses to participants.

NON-ACADEMIC Staff Union of Educational and Associated Instituctions, NASU, has expressed serious reservation about the deliberate misinterpretation of the Retirement Age Act for Polytechnics and Colleges of Education by some state governors who are insisting that the Act is only for Academic Staff.

Samuel Adewumi Dada was a President of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, between 1984 and May 1989, and an ex-employee of Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, where he worked for almost 23 years before retirement in November 1999. He was an administrator of “Help Desk” where people (employees) who were having problems with their computers were assisted to rectify such problems. In this interview with Pension and You, he speaks on the battle with CNL over unpaid wages, how to prepare and when to start preparing for retirement.

ON Monday October 7, 2013, IndustriALL Global Union marked World Day for Decent Work. For IndustriALL Global Union, the Decent Work day provided a critical platform to further strengthen its Stop Precarious Work Campaign and remind employers and Governments to act responsibly on workplace issues for workers and also mobilize and call workers to action against all forms of violations of the rights of workers.

AS the contentious issue of gratuity payment continues to generate divergent views by concerned stakeholders, President of Trade Union Congress of Nigeria, TUC, Comrade Bobboi Kaigama, in this interview with Pension and You, said the planned amendment of the Pension Reform Act, PRA, of 2004, must clearly make the payment of gratuity compulsory and unambiguous.

THE Nigeria Ports Authority, NPA, will meet with its 2006/2007 retirees on October 24, to resolve contentious issues in its Defined Benefit Pension Scheme, DPS.

The Human Capital Providers Association ( HuCaPan), an affiliate of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association ( NECA), held its annual general meeting in Lagos. Labour Vanguard took up the president of the Association, Mr. Neye Enemigin, on some current labour issues.

OF all the six states in the South-West, only Lagos State has fully implemented the Contributory Pension Scheme, CPS while Oyo and Ondo states are yet to commence at all.

IT was a five-day intensive training for a cream of human resources practitioners from leading companies across the country that took place at the ancient city of Ijebu Ode, Ogun State.