ROLE OF TRADE UNIONS IN CURBING CASUALISATION OF LABOUR IN NIGERIA

Abstract

Casualisation of labour is an employment practice which is characterized by precarious employment conditions,
wherein the employee is denied basic employment benefits accruing to standard/permanent employee. Under this
practice, employees are hired on casual basis to perform work of permanent nature directly from the labour market
or through a labour broker in a triangular relationship. This employment practice, though not new, has become an
anathema in Nigeria. The way and manner Nigerian employers have adopted its practice continues to be of great
concern as it has become a dignified labour slavery. Trade unions have been known as the vanguard of employees’
rights protection as it main aim is the furtherance of the welfare of workers. Thus, the persistent wailings of
Nigerian casual workers particularly in the construction, banking, telecommunication and oil and gas sectors is
troubling aside its negative impact on the economy. This paper through doctrinal research method, interrogates the
role of trade in curbing the quagmire of Casualisation in Nigeria. It discusses the anatomy of casualisation of
labour in Nigeria by focusing on its evolution, causes, effects and theories. It also examines the meaning, rise and
theories of trade unions in Nigeria. It found that trade union as a pressure group has reformatory, educational and
oppositional roles in curbing casualisation howbeit, in the midst of certain surmountable challenges like
governmental interference and lack of internal democracy. The paper makes recommendations on how trade
unions can overcome these challenges.