Harboursandport.com: Lagos --- Disengaged
workers of the Bonny Dockworkers Unit, BDWU of the Maritime Workers Union of
Nigeria have dragged the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency, NIMASA before a
National Industrial Court sitting in Lagos State over the non payment of the
severance package.
 |
| DG NIMASA, Dakuku Peterside |
The
disengaged workers, Walter Abie Hart, Ben Ewah Peter, Tony Oramu,
Boniface Dike, Christain Nwakwuribe, Benjamin Okeji and 158 others
are contending in the suit that the severance package offered by the Federal
Government through the Nigerian Port Authority, NPA, was paid to them by the
defendant and no reason was given for non payment.
It will be
recalled during the Port Concessioning Programme (Port Reform), the Federal
Government through NPA disengage all registered dockworkers nationwide, while
the Bonny Dockworkers also formed part of the 13,000 registered dockworkers to
benefit from the N2.6bn severance package.
The
defendants are claiming that prior to the Federal Government of Nigeria Port
Concession Programme, they were duly registered as dockworkers and attended to
duties at Bonny Island Jetty under a Dock Labour Employer Bolag Jay Nigeria
Limited, adding that the defendant did not respond to letters and demand
notices from them through their solicitors.
The
workers noted that “In February 2010, a team of officers from NIMASA visited
Onne Port in Rivers State to conduct a verification exercise for the purpose of
payment of the severance package which members of the BDW Unit were physically
verified while during payment 177 names of BDW unit were excluded out of 200
registered names.”
They are
consequently asking the court to “An order of declaration that the defendant’s
conduct in denying the payment of the severance package of N200,000 each to the
claimants under the Federal Government of Nigeria’s Concessioning of Nigeria
Seaports is illegal, null and void.
*An order
directing the defendant to pay the Claimants who are registered dock workers of
Bonny Unit (Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria) the sum of N200, 000 each as
their severance packages under Federal Government of Nigeria’s Concessioning of
Nigeria Seaports.
*An order
directing the defendant to pay each of the claimants the sum of N1m as damages
for the physical, emotional and psychological trauma suffered by the claimants
in consequences of the refusal and denial in paying the Severance package of
N200,000 to each of the claimants.
*AN ORDER
compelling the defendant to produce an update proof of the payment of Severance
Package to the 100 persons unknown with their names, age and registration
numbers.
*A
declaration that the payment of the Severance Package of the sum of N200,000 to
persons unknown as part of the Dockworkers of Maritime Workers Union, Bonny
Unit by the Defendant in a palace of the Claimant and in consequence preclusion of
the Claimants who are duly registered Dockworkers comprising of
Tallymen/Clark, and Security men of Maritime Workers Union, Bonny Unit of Bonny
Island Jetty, is illegal, void and a breach of the Claimant’s right under
Nigerian Maritime Labour Act of 2003 , the Labour Act of 2003; the Labour Act
Cap L 1, LFN 2004, the NIMASA Act 2007 and the Dock Labour Registration and
Control Empowerment Rule, 2009 as well.”
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