Fostering Equities in Collective Bargaining Powers: A Panacea to Industrial Harmony in Nigeria

Abstract

Industrial relations according to the Marxist theory are denoted by class struggles based on competing and often conflicting class interests, which gives rise to inevitable industrial conflicts. The need to effectively manage this dispute has remained a legal dilemma hence recourse to collective bargaining to minimize these conflicts. Ironically, collective bargaining is not without some reservation, part of which is the issue of bargaining inequities between the parties. This paper aimed to analyze the problem of bargaining inequities within the legal framework for collective bargaining in Nigeria and demonstrate how bargaining inequities contribute to the problem of industrial conflicts. The paper found that although collective bargaining is deeply entrenched in the Nigerian industrial legal framework, the process is undermined by inherent bargaining inequities. The paper argued that existing bargaining inequities are responsible for the ineffectiveness of collective bargaining in addressing industrial conflicts. It thus appears that industrial conflicts will persist if the problem of inequities in collective bargaining is not properly addressed. The paper advocate for an amendment to the Trade Disputes Act to address the inequities in the bargaining processes.

 

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