Nigeria: Union busting activities at Dangote Pasta

Aliko Dangote is said to be the 51^st
richest man in the world; he is officially the richest black person
alive. He is currently head of the government’s committee on the
creation of jobs for Nigerians. However, the true face of this
“prosperous businessman” is never revealed to the masses.

The
mainstream media is totally in his pocket. Hardly anybody knows how he
made his money – that is something the bourgeois media is not interested
in. They are only interested in the extent of his wealth, his luxurious
lifestyle, his houses, etc.

However, behind all this is a
ruthless apparatus committed only to the draconian exploitation of the
workers in the Dangote group of companies. This is the real source of
his wealth.

It must be noted that in the entire groups of
companies he owns, trade union rights are outlawed. Scores of workers
have been sacked, injured, jailed, and some have “disappeared” in his
group of companies for daring to join or form trade unions.

It
has been well documented that where Dangote “acquires” a company the
first thing he does is to disband the workers’ union if one exists in
the factory.

We reproduce this account by one of the
workers affected by the current attack on workers in Dangote Pasta. He
is the branch president of the National Union of Food Beverage and
Tobacco Employees (NUFBTE), Dangote Pasta branch.

NUFBTE
has a track record of being one of the most principled workers’ union in
Nigeria, with a record of several successful fight backs. Currently,
the National leadership has continued to recognize the Dangote unit as
part of the branch in spite of the victimization. And they have
continued to insist that they will continue to struggle for the
reinstatement of all the affected workers and a full reinstatement of
workers’ unionism in Dangote.

All workers activists must
continue to rally round this struggle, which is bound to be a turning
point in the trade union situation in Nigeria. Read the appeal and send off protest letters please.

Account of the attack on Dangote Pasta Workers by the Branch Union President

On
August 11, 2010, the National Union of Food Beverage and Tobacco
Employees (NUFBTE), which Dangote Pasta belongs to, inaugurated the
company’s chapter of the union after several years of struggle.

The
struggle stated as far back as 2004. Due to inhuman treatment from the
management, the workers decided to get unionized as a way of freeing
ourselves from the oppression of the management. Then, the Filipinos
were the ones in charge of production.

The eight-man executive
that started this struggle was all sacked by management who did not want
the workers to be unionized. The national union then took the matter to
court. The union won the case and management was instructed by the
court to reinstate the sacked Executive Committee members and pay them
their outstanding benefits.

Management on their part agreed to pay
all outstanding benefits to the eight union branch executive members
but refused to reinstate them back to normal duty. The union on their
part said that if the eight leaders could not be reinstated another
Executive Committee would have to be elected and inaugurated. Both
parties agreed and a date of inauguration was given to management.

The
inauguration took place in the company premises with the attendance of
the Dangote Group lawyer, NUFBTE’s lawyer, the Human Resource Manager,
HRM, Mr. Idris Ali and some management staff. After the inauguration,
documents were signed by both parties, management and the union.

Just
two weeks after the election and inauguration of the union, on August
30, 2010, management hired some thugs to launch an attack on the union
executive and registered union members. The branch executive committee
members were beaten up as were some of the union members. We were asked
to renounce our membership of the union under duress. Some renounced but
the majority refused to renounce. They locked out all those who refused
renounce.

We called the national union, who said that we should
not be violent but to remain calm. After, two weeks of being locked out,
the matter was resolved by our national union and we were asked to
resume back to our work. Just three days later, the HRM, Mr. Idris Ali
called to inform me that two hundred of the staff appointments has been
terminated. When I asked him why, he said that is was because of
“abandonment of duty”.

He addressed the staff and asked them to
report to security to collect their letters and entitlements.
Immediately, I informed the national union and they instructed us that
the affected staff should not collect the letters and told us to remain
peaceful and calm. The HRM did not include the names of the Executive
Committee members. When I confronted him, he said management only
recognized the executive committee members. I told him that by so doing,
he only exposed our lives to danger. That there is no way, we can be
inside working while the union members are outside.

Since then,
all efforts by the union to resolve the issue have failed. Management
did not honour any invitations. And up till date, we are yet to see any
action by our union against the management.

Comrade Samuel Obuseh,

Branch chairman, NUFBTE, Dangote Pasta Workers