Edo NLC Declares Support For Benin Electricity Workers Over Strike

Hendrix Oliomogbe 

The Edo State Council of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has declared full solidarity with the state chapter of the National Union of Electricity Employees (NUEE) in its ongoing strike over knotty labour issues.

In a statement in Benin City on Monday, October 19, 2026 by the chairman, Caretaker Committee of Edo NLC, Prof. Monday Igbafen, he urged authorities of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) to immediately return to the negotiation table 

Residents of Edo, Delta, Ondo and Ekiti States have been thrown into darkness following a strike by BEDC workers over the contentious issues of harmonization of salary, implementation of national minimum wage, promotion of  workers, threat of mass sack, and other lingering labour matters.

Prof. Igbafen berated authorities of the electricity company for their refusal to use the seven days window of grace after the expiration of 14 days ultimatum given by the union to resolve the contending labour issues.

The statement warned that Edo NLC will not watch idly and allow employers of labour in the state to continue to subject workers to inhuman treatment, exploitation, and wicked working environment. 

The statement reiterated the call by the Caretaker Committee to the state government to cease and desist  from dealing with those he referred to as imposters as NLC leaders in the state, describing such action as a violation of international labour standards.

He noted that the action by the state government in the recent past directly violates ILO Convention No. 98 (Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining), insisting that Article 2 of the said Convention strictly bars employers’interference in the administration and operation of trade unions.

Prof. Igbafen added: "As a member state of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Nigeria is bound by the fundamental conventions that protect the right to organise and bargain collectively."

According to the statement, bypassing the "legitimate leadership of Edo NLC to patronise self-imposed leaders" is a calculated attempt to weaken NLC’s collective bargaining power.

The caretaker committee chairman advised the state government to reconsider its present approach to labour and trade unions in the state.