Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in collaboration with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has embarked on a review of its gender policy, in a move to develop a new policy that will address the gender disparity in the labour centre.
The development followed as stakeholders considered the current policy, established in 2003, as outdated and fell short of the global stride towards 50-50 gender representation in the workplace in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs ).
The new policy, when formulated, intends to create a roadmap for a more equitable future at the labour centre including its affiliate unions.
At a review workshop yesterday in Abuja, the chairperson of the NLC Women’s Commission, Salamatu Aliyu said that the NLC was yet to achieve even 30 percent gender parity, stating that the world has moved towards equal representation.
She urged the congress not to ignore this disparity any longer and charged the labour centre to address key issues that have hindered progress in this regard.
According to her, the benefits of a revised policy would include higher participation of women and the amplification of their voices and to lay a foundation for the younger generation to build upon and exceed.
The senior specialist for workers’ activities at the ILO office, Abuja, Inviolata Chinyangarara acknowledged the changes in the development and labour market contexts since 2003 and stressed the need for a contemporary gender policy that reflects current realities.
Chinyangarara also pointed out that the ILO has recognised the efforts of the NLC and the Nigerian government in adopting key gender conventions on equality, non-discrimination, and ending violence and harassment in the workplace.
She highlighted the urgency to ensure these conventions are reflected in the NLC’s gender policy.