The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) have directed workers under the Federal Capital Territory Authority (FCTA) to resume duties with immediate effect.
The directive followed a late-night meeting involving the unions, Nyesom Wike, minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and the senate committee on FCT, which ended in the early hours of Tuesday.
In a joint statement issued after the meeting, the unions said all grievances raised by the Joint Union Action Congress (JUAC) were fully resolved.
The statement said parties agreed that every pending matter before the national industrial court connected to the dispute would be withdrawn.
“The honourable Minister assured Organised Labour of mutual respect and sustained engagement going forward,” the statement reads.
“It was agreed that, arising from the strike action, no worker shall be victimised in any manner;
“All outstanding cases at the National Industrial Court (NIC) shall be withdrawn immediately.
“Consequently, all JUAC members and all affiliates of the TUC and NLC working in the Ministry of the FCT (MFCT) are hereby directed to resume work immediately.
“All affiliates are enjoined to comply strictly with this directive in the interest of industrial peace and harmony in good faith.”
The statement was jointly signed by Nuru Toro, TUC secretary-general, and Benson Upah, acting NLC general secretary.
The resolution came a day after Emmanuel Subilim, judge of the national industrial court in Abuja, restrained the NLC and TUC from proceeding with a protest scheduled for February 3.
The court order followed an ex parte application filed by Wike and the FCTA.
FCTA workers had commenced an indefinite strike on January 19 over what the unions described as unresolved labour and welfare concerns.
The industrial action paralysed activities across secretariats, departments and agencies of the FCTA and FCDA, prompting the minister to institute legal action against the JUAC.
On January 27, the national industrial court ordered workers to suspend the strike, ruling that although the matter constituted a trade dispute, the right to industrial action was not absolute.
The judge held that once a dispute is before the court, any ongoing strike must stop pending determination of the case.
Following the ruling, the FCTA head of civil service directed workers to resume duties, but the NLC instructed its members to remain on strike until the latest agreement.
