SUNRISE NEWS, Lagos, Aug 27, 2020 The Lagos Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists, has frowned at a recent decision of the management of The Nation Newspapers to disengage over 100 journalists on its pay roll.
Addressing Journalists at his Alausa Office, the Chairman of NUJ in the State, Dr. Qasim Akinreti appreciated the fact that the management of The Nation’s Newspapers may be working towards staying afloat and remain in business following the harsh economic realities, occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a statement jointly signed by the NUJ chairman Dr Qasim Akinreti and the Secretary Alfred Odifa, the union appealed to the publisher of the newspaper and his management team to explore other avenues of remaining afloat, rather than sacking hardworking journalists.
The statement reads in part: “This suggestion by the NUJ is based on the fact that our members who worked throughout the period of lockdown have been risking their lives and have remained on the frontline for the survival of the organisation and therefore do not deserve such treatment.
Workers needed not to be paid back with sack or disengagement, but to rather be given a pat on the back for a job well-done.
“We are consequently calling on the management of media organisations to abide by a recent pronouncement by the Federal Government “that employers will not be encouraged to disengage staff without prerequisite social dialogue and clearance from Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.”
“The Lagos Council of NUJ is as a result pleading with the Management of The Nation Newspapers to, as a matter of urgency pay off all sacked workers’ benefits and entitlements.”
