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Payment of PHCN workers’ entitlements yet to commence

By on May 14, 2013

Two months after it announced the approval of N384bn as severance package for workers of the Power Holding Company of Nigeria, the Federal Government has not commenced payment to the workers.

The government had stated that it would commence the payment in March, and that it would be done in three phases.

However, findings by our correspondent on Monday revealed that the committees set up by the government to compute the entitlement of each worker were struggling to complete their respective tasks.

It was also gathered that the government would meet with top officials of the Nigerian Union of Electricity Employees and the Senior Staff Association of Electricity and Allied Companies on Tuesday (today) in Abuja to further discuss outstanding labour issues.

A senior officer of one of the unions, who is privy to the matter, told our correspondent that the government had been making verbal commitments in a bid to gather funds to offset the entitlements.

The source, who pleaded not to be named because of the sensitive nature of the subject, said the government was making frantic efforts to clear the workers’ severance package, adding that investors were beginning to pressure the Federal Government to pay the employees.

“The pressure is much on them (government) because investors had warned that labour matters must be fully resolved for the privatisation of the power sector to work,” the source said.

Last month investors in the power generating and distribution companies expressed worries over the lingering feud between the Federal Government and labour unions, warning that the whole privatisation exercise might suffer serious setback if the government ignored the unions.

 

 

 

[Punch]