The leadership of Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI), the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) and AIICO Insurance Plc have declared that the Employees’ Compensation Act(ECA) was a comprehensive piece of legislation that addressed workers’ insecurity, safety and anxiety as stipulated under the Convention 102 of the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
ASSBIFI’s National President, Comrade Sunday Olusoji Salako,speaking at the opening ceremony of the national executive council (NEC) of the association on the importance of the ECA to workers in Benin, Edo State said in addition, the Act made provision for an open and fair system of guaranteed and adequate compensation for all employees or their dependants or any death, injury, disease or disability arising out of or in the course of employment.
He said :“We call on workers in the country to embrace the Act as it is a comprehensive piece of legislation that addresses workers’ insecurity, safety and anxiety as stipulated under the Convention 102 of the ILO.
“The Act repealed the Workmens’ Compensation Act 2004, and to make comprehensive provisions for compensation for any death, injury, disease or disability arising out of or in the course of employment and for matters connected therewith as well as to provide for an open and fair system of guaranteed and adequate compensation for all employees or their dependants or any death, injury, disease or disability arising out of or in the course of employment,” he added
He however called for compensation for workers who suffered mental damages as a result of unethitical practices to ensure that the provision regarding mental/emotional damage were properly enumerated and enforced.
Also, the Assistant General Manager, Technical in AIICO Insurance Plc, Mr. Bosun Oduniy, who emphasised that the ACT was a social insurance scheme designed as part of labour reforms to guarantee that Nigerian workers were adequately compensated for any death, injury, disease or disability arising out of or in the course of employment ,called for proper supervision to ensure its success.
He however called on the federal government to ensure the scheme would guarantee poverty alleviation, create wealth as well as help Nigeria in attaining the United Nation’s millennium development goals for developing nations.
Meanwhile, the Head Reasearch and Publications of the NSITF, Mr. Ola Jacob Oluwafemi, while presenting a key note address on why workers in the country should take advantage of the scheme to make meaningful contributions to the economic growth of Nigeria, noted that “the most exciting provision of the new ECA is that it seeks to pay employee compensation for the life of the injured worker or his dependents irrespective of the duration of contribution that was made in respect of that worker.”
The ECA signed into law by President Goodluck Jonanthan on December 17, 2010 is an open and fair system of guaranteed and adequate compensation for all employees or their dependants for any death, injury disease or disability (DIDD) arising out of the course of employment.It also seeks the maintenance of a solvent compensation fund amongst other things.
The ECA compels each and every employer in Nigeria to make a minimum contribution of 1 per cent of its monthly payroll into the Employees Compensation Fund.
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