With the incessant sack and recruitments taking place in the country, millions are at loss, but everyone feels less concerned about the plight of the common man.
Although slavery and slave trade was abolished in time past, it is still in existence. It is not difficult to pick it out in different places: on the street, in clubs, at home, most especially, in workplaces.
Modern Slavery
A new form of slavery exists today, and it is championed by those that regard themselves as ‘former slaves’, ‘free men’, ‘civilised’ or ‘developed’. The slavery practiced today is a situation where a black employer enslaves another, and reduces him to nothing.
Industrial or Workplace Slavery in Nigeria
In Nigeria, industrial slavery thrives like a normal affair; it is a form of slavery whereby an employer enslaves his employee in diverse ways. Employers subject their employees to inhuman conditions, but at the end, they pay them peanuts.
Employees are forced to work long hours, sign disturbing contracts that leave them vulnerable or insecure, involve themselves in degrading acts (banking and insurance industry), and at the end, they are sacked.
It is clear that man is not a machine; he has a level of operation, but a worker is placed on a job that is meant for two people. The employer is not thoughtful about his employee’s level of productivity, his health status or the condition of mind, that he (employee) works more than twelve hours in a day. Men have been turned into machines and robots, and mulled like animals, to their own detriment and to the satisfaction of their employers.
Each day, people lose their jobs for reasons best known to their employers; some go home without a paycheque and no one asks questions. It is not only that the country suffers under the soles corruption, but the labour force is now a form of slavery, this era harbours the reign of industrial slavery –workers are turned into slaves, their work hours are not regulated, and neither is their pay. One is left to ask about the labour unions that are supposed to protect these works.
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We complain that the level of crime, prostitution and-all-worth- not are on the increase, but more are yet to come, because the more people lose their jobs by the day, the more people keep idle. These companies burden their workers with so much, but pay so little. Some works that are meant to be ‘shift’ are done by one person, and at the end, a family man or woman goes home too late with so little that can’t even put a decent meal on the table.
It is amazing that the only thing the government cares about is their tax, they care less about the ants that labour to build the bricks. Each day, the helpless die in hospitals because they are unable to meet up with their demands, children are sent home from school because their parents are unable to pay their school fees; we hear about domestic violence –it is as a result of frustration and transferred aggression, from boss to worker, and from worker to wife.
Is it not too obvious that we are sailing a Titanic? How is the country expected to grow, when the workforce is simply put under the soles of the elephant ? Competent hands are scandalously uprooted and are replaced by incompetent ones. It is an irony to drive a force that is already dead.
Where are the Unions?
Usually, in every work place, there ought to be a union that protects, protests or present the workers before their employees. Unfortunately, most employers do not allow such to exist in their firms, and the unions that do exist are either too weak to function, frustrated or intimidated by power or bought over by politics. These workers work with no atom of job security, and some work under the pressure of the present economic state of the country.
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It is the responsibility of the country to guide its citizens against slave riders in form of employers of labour. It is a crime against humanity to cover or host such companies that enslave a good majority of a country’s workforce in the name of employment. The working class are left to the mercies of the bourgeoisies or the capitalists who Karl Marx warned against getting the working class agitated due to their overly demanding nature. So it is with employers in Nigeria; they over ride the donkey ( the working class), but do not expect them to revolt or complain. On the other hand, these helpless workers are too scared to talk, out of fear of losing their only source of livelihood.
Also, everything boils down to the fact that the society and economic growth. On one hand, the family which acts as the smallest unit of a society deteriorates with each passing day. The capitalist lords care less about their employees, that is why they force them to resume work as early as six or seven in the morning. These employers are out to make money, nothing more, nothing less. A family man or woman leaves the house before the kids are awake, and come home when they are already in bed.
There is no way such parents can make impact in the lives of their kids who ought to be the strong holds of tomorrow or take over the labour force. On the other hand, the economy could be hugely affected, if not crippled, in the long run, because time changes everything. There is a certain level at which one gets to, and instead of being productive, they turn out to be counter productive. One does not expect the same level of productivity or output from a person who works six hours and a person who works twelve hours.
The Western world seem to understand this much better than Africa or Nigeria. In Nigeria and average employer works more than six hours in a day. That is why when employees are over stretched, there would certainly be a drop on the level of their productivity which invariably, could affect the economy. In most cases, when some employers take note of such, they get rid of such people, and employ a set of young-blood.
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Women have not been too lucky in their attempt to pursue a career in the country. Starting with the interviews, where they are asked about their marital status and their plans to settle down, and to some extent, they are asked to sign binding contracts that could hinder their setting up a family. It is improper to forget the fact that women face sexual harassment and assaults, not only from their boss, but are forced to prostitute themselves to clients in exchange for whatever is on the menu.
It is obvious that Nigeria is faced with a very sensitive issue, but the silence is too loud not to raise an eyebrow. Employees labour for nothing, but nobody is ready to fight the faceless employers. In turn, their (employees’) input becomes a labour of silence.
Written by Udemezue, Oluoma
Udemezue, Oluoma loves to read and write; she also enjoys movies and meeting new people. Oluoma believes that life is nothing without a little touch of romance, thriller and reality. Catch her on: udemezueoluoma@yahoo.com, Udemezue, Oluoma Judith on Facebook, Instag- oluomaudemezue, and Twit- @Udemezueoluoma.