MWUN Declares Trade Dispute Against Employers Of Labour Over Unvaccinated Dockworkers, Seafarers

The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has called on terminal operators and ship owners to ensure that dockworkers and seafarers are fully vaccinated as part of preventive measures to the omicron variant spread of coronavirus, saying the union might be forced to embark on trade dispute over failure to protect Nigerian workers from the pandemic.

 

The union declared that as frontline workers in port operations and also engaging foreigners at the teeminals, the concessionaires must put adequate measures on ground for their safety and vaccination.

 

President General of MWUN, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju who spoke with our correspondent on Friday in Lagos , reiterated that the national officers, branch executives and district executives have been vaccinated twice since the third wave of  omicron variant  spread ,  stressing the need for the multinationals to carry the vaccination of workers at the quay aprons across all seaports in the country.

 

According to him, seafarers and dockworkers must be carried along in the vaccination exercise at the ports and onboard ships as essential workers in the fight against coronavirus adding that the Covid-19 pandemic is not meant for the elite alone but every human beings that breathe in oxygen and out carbon dioxide.

 

Adeyanju maintained that the concessionaires must liaise with port health services personnel to carry out the vaccination from port to port across the littoral states in Nigeria pointing out dockworkers and seafarers have what it takes to spread the pandemic to the larger society if neglected.

 

He also commended management of APM Terminal  Apapa for the swift action in the vaccination of dockworkers at the facility, saying that the concessionaire understood that risk involved in the Omicron variant spread.

 

While reiterating that union’s commitment of for members welfare and health status, Adeyanju affirmed that dockers and seamen are dealing directly with foreigners on a regular basis thus must be taken seriously health wise.

 

“We have sent memo to all the terminal operators and shipping agencies to carry out vaccination of our members in the seafaring and shipping sub sections and dockworkers. It’s very key because we don’t know who is a carrier.

 

“I think NIMASA , port health services and NPA should be awake to their responsibilities. It is for the benefit for everybody. We are aware that some stakeholders are not ready for the jab.

 

“The national staff of the union has taken it, the branch executives have taken it and the district officers have equally taken it but what about what about those at the quays and aboard ships. It’s about prevention

 

 

“We might be forced to declare trade dispute with the terminal operators if they fail to carry out vaccination of our workers. We want them to give our members the vaccines .

 

“We will declare against any terminal operators who fail to vaccinate our members in their terminals and we will also do same with the shipping line agencies because our members are the frontline workers.

 

“We must lead by example because the employers must ensure that the workers are safe. Health is wealth .”

 

“As a responsible leader we must ensure that things are done to favour our workers. We must ensure that the employees and employers benefit from the system in moving the sector forward.”

 

By Roland Ekama