…Urges enhanced service delivery
The Management and staff of the Nigerian Premier Labour Institute, Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS), Ilorin, have been lauded for promoting workplace industrial harmony through enhanced training and capacity building for workers, employers and government officials in Labour and Industrial Relations as contained in the Institution’s enabling Act.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Maigari Dingyadias, gave this commendation while receiving the “State of the Institute report” from the Director General of the Institute, Comrade Issa Aremu, in Abuja.
The report indicated that, despite limited budgetary allocation, MINILS had between January and November 2024 impacted over 2,000 participants from both the private and public sectors of the Nigerian economy through training, development and capacity-building activities with its annual regular and tailor-made (in-plant) training windows run by the five core departments of Trade Union Education, Labour Management Relations, Academic and Distance Learning programmes, Entrepreneurial Development, and Social Protection.
According to the report, a total of 35 internal and external on-site and online Regular seminars and 21 In-plant/Tailor-made courses have been mounted for Trade Unions, Organised Private Sector firms and Ministries, Departments and Agencies of Government at all tiers and levels from almost all the geopolitical zones with labour market subjects that include, Labour laws and Employment Regulations, Organising and Leadership Skills, Grievance and Conflict Resolution, Work Ethics and Values.
In addition, participants from the six geopolitical zones of the country attended the 47 training programmes, implying that the MINILS has delivered on its national mandate of ensuring that participants enhance their competency, enable organisations to raise their productivity levels and maintain cordial labour-management relations skills through social dialogue and collective bargaining which has, in turn, minimised avoidable strikes by unions and lockout by employers and governments.
The major highlight of the report is the MINILS Cost of Living Market Survey of February 2024, studies and analysis which served as resource material for the peaceful negotiations of the 2024 National Minimum Wage by organized labour and the Federal government.
While commending MINILS for exceeding the deliverable target of 1250 participants mark in 2024, the Labour Minister Alhaji Muhammadu Maigari Dingyadias noted that many labour disputes are still preventable through education with qualified scholars in labour relations adding that MINILS like other agencies deserved adequate funding to align with the reform agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Both the Acting Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment, Mr John Nyamali, and the Minister commended the Institute for reviving the annual Labour Summit with the proposed 10th National Industrial Labour Summit scheduled for November 16. 2024 in Ilorin.
It is themed: The Future of Work and the Renewed Hope Reform Agenda: Issues and Perspectives and the Honorable Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, HE Senator Abubakar Bagudu as the lead Speaker CON, and the Honorable Minister (State) Labour and Employment Rt Hon Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, OON is the Chief Host.
