National Environmental Standards And Regulations Enforcement Agency Must Stop Stealing Employees Salaries

NESREA MUST STOP THEFT OF EMPLOYEES SALARIES

Equality Initiative Forum an umbrella body of selected human rights groups in the Eastern and Southern part of Nigeria led by Freedom House Initiative (FHI) is sad to note that the management of National Environmental Standards and Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA), a Nigerian Federal Agency under the Federal Ministry of Environment is into theft of employees salaries.

An employee works hard for his salaries, putting in many hours each month to help the agency or company to grow. An employee receives his salary monthly. This arrangement generally works well because it gives you the security you need while also giving a business the support it needs to grow.

However, in NESREA, the agency does not honour employment agreement they have with employees. Equality Initiative have received confidential complaint from some persons on how in NESREA, persons will be newly employed and the management will owe them (newly employed) salaries for 11 months, some for one year and when they are paid, they will be paid just three months salaries and the management will decline to pay the balance threatening the employee of sack if he dares go public. This practice has been going on for some time now.

When a company or an agency, be it a federal agency refuses to pay a worker the money he is due, it is considered theft and anyone involved in this act of theft should be held accountable. We condemn this situation going on in NESREA in its entirety; for a situation where someone will be employed in a federal agency and he will not be paid for 11 months or one year and when paid will be paid just three months and several months of his salaries will be stolen by management is worse than slavery.

We demand an end to theft of employees salaries in NESREA and that immediate payment be made to victims of this situation. We shall support all actions to resist this evil going on in NESREA including legal battle. We call on all the affected persons to form a coalition and resist the management’s refusal to pay their salaries. We call on the organized trade unions to lead these affected people to end this mess and get justice.

Comrade David Kalu,
Regional Secretary [South-East],
Equality Initiative[EI]
Veronica Amadi
For Freedom House Initiative
Mrs Fidelia Ibekwe,
President,
Centre for the Advancement of Children’s and Women’s Rights [CACWR]

Mrs Anwuli Madubuogwu,
Secretary,
Delta Youths Initiative for Democracy [DFID].
Engineer AmakaBiachi
Executive Director
Centre for Human Empowerment, Advancement and Development [CHEAD]

Ms Meg Chukwu,
Secretary,
Centre Against Human Rights Violations and Corrupt Practices [CAHVCP].

CC; NESREA,
Media Houses,
Human Rights groups,
Labour Union,
Ministry of Environment