Group condemns mass sack of Water Corporation workers, demands recall

The Campaign for Democratic and Workers Rights has condemned the sack of about 370 workers of the Lagos State Water Corporation (LSWC).

It may be recalled that some workers were relieved of their appointments on Monday, April 15, 2024.

While making a case for the affected workers, the group noted that the mass sack violates Section 20 of the Labour Act and was carried out under an atmosphere of intimidation and harassment wherein hundreds of armed security men were mobilised to the corporation head office where the termination letters were handed to the workers.

In a statement signed on behalf of the group by Comrade Rufus Olusesan, National Chairperson and Comrade Chinedu Bosah, National Secretary, they observed that, “Sector 20 of the Labour Act mandates every employer including government to engage the trade union or workers representatives in a dialogue before redundancy or mass sack can be carried out.“Before this sack, the staff strength was said to be about 590. This means about 63 per cent of the regular workforce has been sacked. Similarly in December 2023 over 450 casual workers were laid off. Many of them had worked for over 10 years but were made to remain on poor pay and without being converted to regular staff. We reiterate our call also for their reinstatement to regularised employment with all rights and benefits.

This series of mass sacks of workers is a step in the preparation of the Lagos State government to hand over the corporation to the private sector whose agenda is to exploit and extort the populace similar to what is obtainable in the electricity sector.“Government irresponsibility, neglect and underfunding of the water sector led to the failure to provide potable and safe water to the general public. This is the primary reason many people get water-borne diseases like typhoid fever, cholera, dysentery etc., which can lead to death. According to UNICEF, 70% of water at the point of consumption is contaminated and as a result, 117,000 children die each year in Nigeria. Instead of privatising the water corporation that will engender corporate exploitation and poor service delivery, governments at all levels should invest public funds into the water sector with the agenda of providing safe, potable and affordable water to Nigerians.