The chairman House of Representatives' Committee on Human Rights, Beni Lar, has called on corporate organisations and employers to ensure that the rights of the employees are respected at work places.
Speaking during a National Dialogue, titled: Human Rights and Business: Applying Human Rights Standards to Corporate Actors in Nigeria, organised by the National Human Rights Commission(NHRC), Lar said that employers must respect the right of their employees by giving them good benefit, paying them on time and making the workplace conducive and safe place for them .
"Some companies transport Nigerians in vehicles not fit for human beings. For example, Julius Berger pack Nigerians like animals in long vehicle that you can hardly get ventilation. Some foreign companies come to Nigeria and just paid peanuts; that is bad and must stop."
While pledging the National Assembly's commitment in helping the commission, the Rep said that it would continue to pass bills that would help protect t lives of Nigerians in and outside their places of work.
Also speaking, the former Attorney General of the Federation, Kanu Agabi ( SAN) stated that most Nigerians value money more than life which he said was one of the issues that have brought about poverty in the nation.
"We have been told to live by our own sweat but modern man is bent to eat his bread with the sweat of others. They used inferior method so that they would gather too much by infringing on the lives of people. We regard human right as the responsibility of government; it is the responsibility of everyone."
In his opening address, the executive director of NHRC, Bem Angwem stated that the commission organised the dialogue because of the need for a balance between business and human right and to ensure that corporate organisations were sensitised on the need to comply and recognise their obligation.
(Culled from the Leadership)
We look forward to seeing systems and practices set up to safeguard the rights of Nigerian employees.