Authors
Adesuyi, K. A., Olubobehin, O. O., Adeyemi-Suenu, D.
Abstract
This study examined the history and the activities of early motor transport unions in Lagos since 1932, up to the formation of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Lagos State. It investigated the issues of proliferation, development and various legislations before its establishment in 1978. The first serious attempt by the colonial administration at encouraging the establishment of trade unions was in 1938 when the first labour legislation was enacted, legalizing trade unionism. By 1942, the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUCN) emerged, against the ill-treatment of the drivers by owners leading to the formation of NURTW in 1978. The nature of NURTW and its activities in recent times has raised a number of questions, especially on the issues of legitimacy. Residents of Lagos State perceived the activities of the union as negative. This study adopted a historical research method which involved the use of both primary and secondary data. The primary data collected are from manuscripts, letters and diaries. The secondary materials used were published books and journal articles and government gazette. By this, there is a bridge between the gaps in literature in an area that scholars have paid limited attention with regards to the study of transport unions in Nigeria.
Keywords
Lagos State, Trade Union, Transportation, Development, Workers
Introduction
The origin of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) has a long history which is connected to trade unions. This origin is traceable to the seventeenth century, just before the emergence of the factory system, otherwise known as the Industrial Revolution in Europe (Webb & Webb, 1965:25). Although there were various trade and craft guilds in Europe before the industrial revolution, their fraternity did not form a continuous association that outlived their demands. This buttresses the assertion of Webb and Webb (1965:26) that the industrial revolution contributed to the emergence of trade unions. In essence, modern trade unionism developed out of the definite separation between the employers and the employees, that is, the capitalists and the workers. The emergence of trade unionism in Nigeria, unlike most other colonial dependencies, was rather earlier than expected. James Coleman (1965:212) states that one of the significant occurrences in Nigeria at the beginning of the nineteenth century was the emergence of multiple associations with common interests. Unlike modern trade unions, these interest groups were organized based on traditional guilds and associations with all the paraphernalia of secretaries and executive committees (Coleman, 1965:212).
Content
The first serious attempt by the colonial administration at encouraging the establishment of trade unions was in 1938 when the first labour legislation was enacted, formally legalizing trade unionism (Tinuoye, 2014:376). The first central labour organization to emerge in Nigeria was the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUCN) which was formed in 1942. This piece of legislation was soon followed by other legislations viz; the Trade Disputes and Arbitration Ordinance and Workers Compensation Ordinance of 1945, the Factories Ordinance of 1955, Wages Board and National Provident Fund Ordinance of 1957 (Jauch, 2003:31). Trade unionism in Nigeria has had a chequered history of antagonism and repressive legislations under successive military governments and civilian administrations and that of rivalry within its ranks.
There were also drivers’ unions such as the Western Provinces Drivers’ Union and the Nigerian Motor Workers’ Union in West and Eastern Nigeria respectively. The formation of motor transport unions was a novel development in colonial Nigeria. It was meant to ensure and promote the collective interests of the motor transporters in the face of colonial discriminatory policies in favour of railway transport. In fact, the influence of the Nigerian Motor Transport Union (NMTU) was felt in 1937, when it successfully resisted attempts by the colonial government to impose higher taxes on its members (Ogunremi, 1978:127-144). This study investigate the formation and development of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) in Lagos State from 1932-1978. The next sections of this work capture the literature review, methodology employed for the study, presentation and discussion of findings as well as the conclusion.
Conclusion
This study examined the politics and formation of NURTW in Lagos State, with the focus on its establishment in 1978.Research has shown that the history of indigenous motor transport unions in Nigeria dates back to 1932 and it became proliferated and caused societal menace. From the foregoing, it is very glaring that the emergence of NURTW was achieved through government legislation because of the need to unify the various interest unions, especially the owners and their workers in the sector. In the same vein, the colonial dependency and unfavorable transport policies necessitated the Nigerian Motor Transport Union Strike of 1978. This strike reflects cohesion and courage of the Nigeria Motor Transport Union (NMTU) to end arbitrary government policy. Since its formation as an affiliated body of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the union has played a significant role in complementing the government’s efforts in the provision of public transport services for the teeming masses of Lagos State. Through the fleet of mini-buses (Dánfó) at the disposal of its members (the drivers), the NURTW conveyed about 9,982,000 passengers daily (LAMATA, 2015). The regulatory lacunae observed in the operations of the motor transport union should be urgently addressed by the state government through the implementation of public transport sector reforms and the enforcement of relevant laws.
References
Albert, I.O. (2007). “Between State and Transport Union: NURTW and Politics of Managing Public Motor Parks in Ibadan and Lagos, Nigeria”, in: L. Fourchard (Ed.), Gouverner les villesd’Afrique: Etat, Gouvernement Local etActeursPrives. Paris: Karthala, pp. 125-138. Auto Report NG (2019). “A Review of Lagos Transportation System From The Colonial Days Till Present”, 28 March. Retrieved 21 August, 2021 from: https://autoreportng. com/2019/03/a-review-of-lagos-transportation-syste.html
Coleman, J.S. (1965). Nigeria: Background to Nationalism. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press. Daily Service. (1947). “Enough of It, We Say” and “Monopoly Backed by Statute, Says Prominent Businessman”, VII (619), 8, April, 29 & 30. Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette, 51, (62), Lagos, 16 October, 1975. Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette,6, (65), Lagos, 8 February 1978
Hawkins, E.K. (1958). Road Transport in Nigeria: A Study of African Enterprise. London: Oxford University Press
Hodgkin, T. (1956). Nationalism in Colonial Africa, London: Muller
Jauch, H. (2003). Trade Unions in Africa, Johannesburg: African Labour Research Network –ALRN. Laws of the Federation of Nigeria and Lagos, 1999.