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The court has exclusive jurisdiction in civil causes and matters relating to or connected with any labour, employment, trade unions, industrial relations and matters arising from workplace, the conditions of service, including health, safety, welfare of labour, employee, worker and matter incidental thereto or connected therewith.

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Workplace and Employment Dispute Resolution: Justice Kanyip emphasizes on Rule of Law


983 Wednesday 28th March 2018

 

The presiding judge of National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Lagos Judicial Division, Hon. Justice Benedict B. Kanyip Ph.D was a guest lecturer today Wednesday 28th March 28, 2018 at a training session “Workplace and Employment Dispute Resolution” on Alternative Dispute Resolution organized by Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies for staff of the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) held at Stone-Hedge Hotel, Central Area, Secretariat, Abuja.

 

The Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies is Nigeria’s apex institution for research and advanced studies in law. It was a brainchild of the legal academic community established in March 1979. One of the main ideas in founding the Institute was to establish it as the centre for advanced legal research for all the Nigerian universities with Faculties of Law, so that all postgraduate work could be undertaken there under the joint auspices of the most experienced and learned academic lawyers available in the country, whether indigenous or foreign.

 

In his remark, his lordship expressed that Labour Law itself is facing a crisis, a crises of identity.

 

The Labour Relations (Public Service) Convention No. 151 of 1978 (C.151) then provides for negotiation, mediation, conciliation and arbitration as acceptable means of settling disputes as to the terms and conditions of employment. The Collective Bargaining Convention No. 154 of 1981 (C.154), which is general in scope goes on to provide that bodies and procedures for the settlement of labour disputes should be so conceived as to contribute to the promotion of collective bargaining. The framework of the Trade Disputes Act (TDA) 2004, for instance, accommodates the processes of negotiation, mediation, conciliation, arbitration and adjudication of only trade disputes, inter and intra-union disputes. Other forms of labour disputes are outside the pane.

 

His Lordship accentuated that one noticeable impact of the breakdown of social dialogue is the prevalence of strikes and other forms of industrial actions. The response to this is often the imposition of restrictions on the right to strike, a fact that often escalates the dispute in issue. ILO jurisprudence permits strikes where the dispute in issue is especially a dispute of interest as distinct from disputes of rights.

 

Furthermore, his lordship also reiterated that Industrial harmony in the workplace does not imply the absence of conflict. Conflict in the dynamic relationship between management and labour is inevitable, as the voice of dissent is the hallmark of industrial democracy. As a matter of fact, the legitimate expectations of the employer and labour are inevitably in conflict, translating in practice to a power game between the two blocs.

 

His Lordship answered many questions pertaining to issues relating to dispute in employment in Nigeria and the concept of Alternative Dispute Resolution.

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