Senior academics at the Centre for Gender Studies at the Bayero University Kano have recommended the inclusion of domestic workers in trade unions.
The academics among whom is the present Minister of State for Education, Prof. Suwaiba Ahmad, made the recommendation in a publication published by the centre in collaboration with the Rosa Luxembourg Foundation.
The publication titled “Experiences, conditions of domestic workers; the role of stakeholders in mitigating domestic work abuses in the North-West region of Nigeria” was reviewed on Monday in Abuja by Prof. Magdalene Igbolo of the department of Sociologyy, University of Abuja.
According to the academics, domestic workers in Nigeria appear to be excluded from the national minimum wage hence the need to be affiliated with trade unions.
A closer inspection of existing policy which was proposed by the Nigerian senate to be raised from N18,000 to N30,000 as the national minimum wage in Nigeria in 2019 implicit exclusion of domestic workers can be found with reference to receiving the national minimum wage.
“Domestic workers appear to be excluded from the entitlement to receive the minimum wage under the national minimum wage which states that the requirement to pay the national minimum wage under Section 1 of the act shall not apply to an establishment in which less than 50 workers are employed, a situation that applies to almost all domestic workers,” they said.
In recommendations, the academics advised, “the need for trade unions to actively work for inclusion and representation of domestic workers to ensure their voices are heard and their specific needs are addressed.
In adddition, it is important for the trade unions to collaborate with government and NGOs to amplify their advocacy, efforts, share resources and push for policy changes that benefit domestic workers.”