By Bimbola Oyesola

The Federation of Informal Workers of Nigeria (FIWON), with the support of the American Solidarity Centre, is seeking recognition for app-based drivers in Nigeria under the umbrella of National Union of Professional App-Based Transport Workers (NUPABTW) and the Professional E-Hailing Drivers and Private Owners of Nigeria (PEDPAN).

Consequently, the stakeholders have kicked off a campaign driven by the slogan “Nothing for Us Without Us,” with the objective of achieving formal recognition and adequate representation of informal sector and platform workers for the purposes of achieving decent work and fair remuneration.

As jointly deliberated by the three representatives of the amalgamated unions that cut across Ibrahim Ayoade, President, NUPABTW, Comrade Idris Sonuga, president PEDPA, and Gbenga Komolafe, general secretary, FIWON, unanimously disclosed in a statement that the need to protect vulnerable informal sector workers necessitated the amalgamation of the three unions.

The latest World Bank report states that 80.4 per cent of Nigerians work in the informal sector. Like anywhere else, the pandemic distorted Nigeria labour market and worsened the existing unemployment rate thereby forcing many citizens to the informal sector.

Many young people, mostly university graduates, had to seek employment in the gig economy as app-based drivers or other informal sector jobs due to their inability to find formal jobs.

Informal sector workers are the most vulnerable to the negative effects of the pandemic because some of COVID-19 measures like lockdowns and curfews have resulted in loss of livelihoods for many informal sector workers who depend on daily wages for survival and have no access to social protection.

Related News

The group agreed that the above socio-economic situation is been worsened by absence of regulations in both the informal sector and the gig economy, and that has further compounded with little institutional supports from the government at all levels.

The drivers lamented constant harassment and extortion by state agents like police who ought to be protecting the already disadvantaged workers.

According to the workers, multiple taxations and levies by the federal, state and local governments eat deep into their little earnings coupled with unfair labour practices by some employers, especially the app-based companies which they say has become the norm.

On the demands that are set to be achieved through the amalgamation, they unanimously agreed to facilitate full workers and union rights through unionisation, and by that will push against unilateral deactivation and blocking of account by app-based companies without fair hearing, and also demanded that their members should be given opportunities to have a say in pricing mechanism within the sub sector.

In the same vein, they aim at using the new union to demand enhanced safety and security measures through adequate profiling of customers (riders), and at the same time demand training and upskilling for increased output, quality, efficiency in production and increased market share of local produced goods.

The amalgamated unions also vowed to ensure provision of social protection services, especially old age care and support schemes through state supported savings, subsidised health insurance, maternity and disability care and support systems.

Also, part of their demands are decent workplace through the establishment of informal work clusters and provision of basic infrastructures such as drainages, electricity, water and toilet as well as increased credit access to informal businesses through their cooperative.