LCI 506 – LABOUR LAW II (2022/23 SESSION)

COURSE OUTLINE

WELCOME

Welcome to LCI 506– Labour Law II. My name is Dr. Jadesola Lokulo-Sodipe. I will be
teaching this course with two of my colleagues, Dr.O OOnakoya and Dr Kehinde Anifalaje.

This course introduces the students to Collective Employment Law, which governs the
relationship between employers and employee organisations i.e Trade Unions, and other
incidental matters.

The course will be assessed using continuous assessment tests/term paper and an examination at
the end of the semester.

TYPICAL LEARNER CHARACTERISTICS

This is an optional course and it is expected that students enrolling for the course should have an
interest in employment and labour law. Being a final year course, students should be capable of
carrying out independent detailed research into the various relevant legislative instruments and
International Conventions.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

(1) To enable students, have a good grasp of the background and structure, formation,
registration and legal status, and government and administration of Trade Unions in
Nigeria;
(2) To afford students the understanding of the legal rules and principles regulating
collective bargaining and agreements, and industrial conflicts in Nigeria;
(3) To familiarise students with the workings of labour agencies and the National
Industrial Court.
EXPECTED OUTCOME

By the end of this course, it is expected that students will be able to:

(1) discuss the background and structure, formation, registration and legal status, and
government and administration of Trade Unions in Nigeria;

(2) enumerate legal rules and principles regulating collective bargaining and agreements, and
industrial conflicts in Nigeria; and

(3) discuss the duties and powers of labour agencies, and the jurisdiction of the National
Industrial Court.
ASSESSMENTS

1. Continuous Assessment, made up of essay and tests, will account for forty percent (40%)
of the total score for the course.
2. End of course examination will be sixty per cent (60%).

COURSE OUTLINE

1. TRADE UNIONS:
 Background and Structure
 Formation
 Registration and legal status
 Government and administration
o Control of union funds
o Obligations
o Civil and Criminal liability

2. COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AND AGREEMENTS

 Framework
 Nature
 Legislation

3. INDUSTRIAL CONFLICTS
 Strikes and Lock Out
 Trade Disputes

4. LABOUR AGENCIES
 Federal Ministry of Labour
 Industrial Trust Fund
 International LabourOrganisation
 5. NATIONAL INDUSTRIAL COURT

REFERENCES

(1) TEXT

1. Akintunde Emiola, Nigerian Labour Law., Emiola (Publishers Ltd., Ogbomosho 2000)
2. Bamidele Aturu, Nigerian Labour Laws: Principles, Cases, Commentaries& Materials
.,Frankard Publishers, Lagos 2005
3. Davies and Freedland, Labour and the Law, (3rd edition) ., Stevens & Sons, 1983
4. E. E. Uvieghara., Labour Law in Nigeria., Malthouse Press Ltd., Lagos 2001
5. E. E. Uvieghara, Trade Union Law in Nigeria., EPC, Benin-City
6. Emeka Chianu, Employment Law., Bemicov Pub. (Nig.) Ltd., Akure., 2004
7. Oladosu Ogunniyi, Nigerian Labour and Employment Law in Perspective Folio
Publishers Ltd., Lagos., 2004
(2) STATUTE.

1. Labour Act, cap. L1 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004 vol. 8.

2. Trade Dispute Act
3. Trade Union Act
4. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
3) INTERNATIONAL CONVENTIONS

Relevant UN and ILO Conventions will be referred to as the need arises.

TRADE UNIONS

What are Trade Unions?

The parent law for the establishment of trade unions in Nigeria is the Trade Unions Act, cap 432,
Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 1990.Section 1 (1) of the act defines a trade union as:
Any combination of workers or employers, whether temporary or permanent, the purpose of
which is to regulate the terms and condition of employment of workers, whether the combination
in question would or would not, apart from this Act, be a lawful combination by reason of any of
its purposes being in restraint of trade, and whether its purpose does or does not include
provision of benefits for its members.
From the foregoing definition, two criteria must exist for the purpose of determining whether an
association, for purposes of registration,

1. The association must comprise workers or employers

2. The main or principal purpose of the association must be to regulate the terms and
conditions of workers.

Trade unions and occupational associations have a joint responsibility with the employer to
create a workplace free from discrimination.
i. Unions assist with human rights issues within the employment context.
By:
 guiding a member who has a human rights issue through the employer's internal complaint
resolution process;
 informally assisting members to resolve a complaint;
 advocating with the employer on behalf of the member;
 helping a member file a grievance based on a human rights issue;
 helping a member make a human rights complaint with the Human Rights Commission; and
 making a policy grievance against the employer on behalf of the union's members.

ii. The union must provide services to all members. A member who has an issue has a right to full
service from the union regardless of what the issue involves. For instance, the union has a
responsibility to help a member who has a mental health issue access the employer's internal
complaint resolution processes and grievance procedures in addition to making a human rights
complaint. Also, a member who has made a complaint against the union still has the right to the
services normally offered by the union.
iii. Resolution of members complaints. The union can assist with this process by:
 outlining the employer's procedures for resolving a complaint;
 referring the member to the employer‟s policy;
 going to any informal meetings with the member;
 advocating with the employer on behalf of the member;
 helping the member to clarify how the alleged discrimination has affected them; and
 assisting the member in identifying potential resolutions.
iv. Dealing with issues between members: Even though a complaint may be initiated by one union
member against another union member, the union still has a responsibility to ensure that both
members are fairly represented. The union may assist a member who has been terminated based on
allegations of sexually harassing behaviour, while at the same time assisting the person who has
alleged harassment. In some cases the union has decided to represent a member in one aspect of their
grievance, while refusing to grieve another aspect, such as the harassment issue. The union should
consult its legal counsel on the duty to fairly represent members before making a decision on how to
handle a case involving conflicting interests. The union, along with the employer, must remember its
duty to create a discrimination-free work environment.

v. A union can assist a member who has potentially been discriminated against by:
 keeping an open dialogue;
 making sure the member is aware of meetings and decisions that affect their interests;
 consulting with the member about their needs; and
 referring the member immediately for a consultation with the Commission.

vi. Advocacy: In another situation, a member might need certain accommodations for a disability.
The union can help the member clearly express their accommodation needs.
Other union members and co-workers may need education and information about the duty to
accommodate to understand why a member is being accommodated. An open line of communication
between affected individuals will help the union get the necessary information to resolve the issue.

vii.Retaliation
A union may not retaliate against a member for making a complaint

1. Association of workers
From the above definition only an association of workers or employers is registrable as a trade
union. By the provision of Section 52 of the Trade Unions Act, a worker means:
Any employee, that is to say any member of the public service of the federation or of a state or
any individual (other than a member of any such public service) who has entered into or works
under a contract with an employee, whether the contract is for manual Labour, clerical work or
otherwise, expressed or implied, oral or in writing and whether it is a contract personally to
execute any work or labour or a contract of apprenticeship.

2) Purpose
The general principle of law in this regard is that whatever other lawful purposes a trade union
allows itself under its rules, books or constitution, its principal or overriding purpose must be the
regulation of terms and conditions of employment of workers.
In line with the general law and by the provisions of section 7(1) (d) of the Trade Union Act,
where the principal purpose for which a trade union is being carried on has ceased to be that of
regulating the terms and conditions of the employment of worker, the registrar of trade unions is
empowered to carry out an inspection on the valid registration of such a union.
The courts, in order to determine what the principal purpose of an association is, must peruse the
rule book or constitution of the association in its totality, especially its objects or purposes
clauses.
See RE: UNION OF IFELODUN TIMBERS DEALERS AND ALLIED WORKMEN [1964] 2
ALL N.L.R. 63.

It is also important to point out that the regulation of terms and conditions of employment of
workers may be affected by a trade union through:

a) Collective bargaining
b) Industrial actions.

Formation, Registration and Legal Status of TradeUnions

A trade union cannot take any step for the purpose of which it has been formed unless it has been
registered. Although the Trade Union Act does not expressly vest corporate personality on a
trade union, the question, nonetheless, is whether a trade union is, by indication a legal entity.

One of the fundamental attributes of a legal entity is the ability to sue and be sued. The English
House of Lords held in TAFF VALE RAILWAY CO. V. AMALGAMATED SOCIETY OF
RAILWAY SERVANTS [1901] AC.426 that:
If the legislature has created a thing which can own property, which can employ servants, and
which can inflict injury, it must be taken to have impliedly given the power to make it suitable in
a court of law for injuries purposely there by its authority and procurement.
There has not been any dissenting view or opinion in all cases involving trade unions both in
England and in Nigeria since the decision in the above cited case and this is indicative of the fact
that given the rights and statutory recognition of a registered trade union, a refusal to call it
legal entity may be the result of a mere dislike of a terminology.

Union Membership and Office

See – Sec. 37&40 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria.
See also OSAWE V. REGISTRAR OF TRADE UNIONS [1985]I.N.W.L.R. [PT.4] 755.

Union Rule Book

See Section 4(2) of Trade Union Act, generally.
The general rule is that a registered trade union has a statutory duty to deliver or send a copy of
its rule to any person on request and on paying of the prescribed fee. However, it is an offence
for any person, with the intent to mislead or defraud, to supply or lend to any member or
prospective member of a registered union a false copy of it rules.
The rules of a registered trade union constitute a contract between the union and its members.
The contract is exhaustive as to the purposes of the union and the rights and obligations of its
members. Therefore, it will be ultra vires the union to do a thing not provided for in its rules, that
is, by the terms of the contract.

Suspension and Expulsion of Members

The authority of a trade union to act on behalf of its members is derived from its rule book. A
trade union can exercise only those disciplinary measures over its members that are stipulated in
its rules. The following are the criteria required by the courts for this purpose;
1. The rules should expressly grant to the Union the power to take the disciplinary measure in
question.
2. The union must in taking disciplinary measures comply with the rules of natural justice, and
with such other procedure stipulated in its rules.
3. Even where there is a power to discipline, the union can only impose the specific section
stipulated in the rules.

Union Membership and the Rule in Foss V. Harbottle

The common law principle in FOSS V. HARBOTTLE [1843] 2 at 461states that where a wrong is
done to a company or where there is an irregularity in its internal management which is capable
of being ratified by a simple majority of the members, the court will not interfere at the suit of a
minority of the members to rectify the wrong or to regularize the irregularity.
This rule has given rise to two other rules which regulate the institution of actions in respect of
wrong done to a body corporate and any other
incorporated association. These rules are:
1. Actions in respect of wrongs done to a company must be brought by the company and in its
name
2. The court will not interfere in respect of actions if the wrongdone or the irregularity
complained of is within the powers of the majority to rectify.

The exceptions to these rules are the following:

1) It does not apply where the action is brought to restrain the union from an ultra vires act.

2) Where the action is to restrain the union from doing by a simple majority that which
ought to be done by a special majority the rule will be excluded

3) Where the action is to prevent a fraud on the minority

4) Where the action is brought to restrain the invasion or violations of membership rights.

Union Membership and the Doctrine of Closed Shop

The term “Closed Shop” is a colloquialism for Union Management Agreements. This means
collective agreement between trade unions and employers, whereby “employees come to realise
that a particular job is only to be obtained or retained if they become and remain members of
one of a specified number of trade unions.”
In pre-entry closed shop, the prospective employee must first join a particular union before he
could be employed while in post-entry closed shop, the employee must join the required union
within a short time after acquiring employment. If is however important to note that in any trade
or industry in which the close shop operates, the consequences of an employee losing his union
membership may be disastrous to his capacity to earn a living.
The concept of closed shop is an aspect of the English labour law, which was not incorporated
into Nigeria labour law.

Exhaustion of Internal Remedies

Usually, the rules of the union may expressly provide that a member cannot sue the union until
he has exhausted all internal remedies provided by the rules. This provision where available,
requires an aggrieved member to exhaust all domestic remedies before proceeding to the court.
There are four exceptions to this rule:

1. Where the member can show cause why the court should interfere with the contractual
relationship between him and his union. The court will interfere where a member has been
disciplined in breach of the rules of natural justice.
2. Where non-intervention will result in the deprivation of some special membership right, e.g.
the right to union office.
3. Where the decision of the union is ultra vires, in which case, there is no decision in law from
which the member would be obliged to appeal against.
4. Where there is no express provision regarding exhaustion the courts can readily or at all
events, grant relief without prior recourse to the domestic remedies but may require the plaintiff
to resort first to those remedies.
.
Re-organisation of trade unions
See the following enactments:
1) Time Union Ordinance of 1938.
2) Trade Union (Amendment) Ordinance caps 200 of 1958.
3) Trade Union (Amendment) Act of 1978-1978.
4) Trade Union Act, Cap. 437, LFN, 1990.
5) Trade Unions (Amendment) Decree no. 4 of 1996.

SUMMARY.
• Exposition of the statutory definition of what trade unions are.
• Distinguishing factors between association of workers or employees and the principal purpose.
• General and statutory requirement for the formation and registration of trade unions.
• Legal status of trade unions.
• Legal position of union membership and the office.
• Purpose and significance of the union rule book.
• Legal requirements for the suspension and expulsion of membersof a trade union.
• Union membership and the rule in FOSS V HARBOTTLE.
• Union membership and the concept of the “closed shop.”
• General rule and exceptions in trade unionism.
• Relevant statutes in recantation to the re-organisation of trade unions.

INDUSTRIAL ACTION

INTRODUCTION
The phrase industrial action is a generic form used to represent concerted efforts which
employees may take in order to exert pressure on the employer so as to persuade or compel him
to accede to their demands or claims.
Although a strike action is the major form of industrial action, there are, however, other forms
short of strike. Employees, rather than strike, may decide to do a “work-to-rule” or “go–slow” or
“sit-in” by being at work and doing nothing, or by, work-to–contract which is by withdrawing
their usual enthusiasm and co-operation or, boycott the employer‟s products.

Strike and the Contract of Employment

In some cases, it is important to note that in embarking on industrial action short of strike,
employees may be liable for breach of their contract of employment, depending however, on the
express and implied terms of the contract.
Following the completion of the contract of employment between an employee and an employer,
and the attendant consequences, it appears that strike may be the only instrument left in the
hands of employees to compel a recalcitrant employer to comply with the terms of a collective
agreement or to collectively bargain with their union or representatives.
Thus, it has been observed that the threat or actuality of a strike by the union represents the
economic and social power that often causes the company to reverse its wages to a point where
they are acceptable to the union.
Whatever may be the actual and potential benefits of a strike from the perspective of the
employee, there are statutory and common law restrictions on the right or freedom to strike. See
Section 42(1) of the Trade Disputes Act, cap 432, LFN, 1990.
At common law, a strike may not only be in breach of the contract ofemployment of the strike,
entitling the employer to summarily dismiss its employees. Essentially, employees cannot
embark on a strike without issuing a strike notice on their employers otherwise the employer will
exercise his right to summarily dismiss the employees which is a right he has under the contract
of employment.
Where the strike notice is shorter than the contractual notice, the employer can either treat such a
notice as anticipatory breach by the employees of their contracts of employment or wait for the
threatened strike to take place. The notion of a strike notice merely suspends the contract of
employment. This has its attendant problems as follows:
1. Who decides when to lift the suspension?
2. Can the employer order the striking workers to return to work?
3. Would the employee be free to take up other employments during the period of suspension?

Picketing
Picketing is defined as the physical means employed by employees either to intensity the
economic pressure meted on the employer or to ensure that the concerted stoppage of work is not
undermined.
The right to picket is closely knitted with such issues as the freedom of assembly and expression,
the right to privacy, the rights of individuals to the highway and the duty of the state to maintain
law and order. See generally chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria. The law regulating picketing is contained in section 42 of the Trade Union Act, 1990.

Lock–Out
A “lock–out” is the converse of a strike. It is the right of the employer tolock his employees out
of his business premises in order to compel than to accept his terms and conditions of
employment. This is provided by section 47 (1) of the Trade Disputes Act, cap 432, LFN 1990 as
follows;
… the closing of a place of employment, or the suspension of work or the refusal of an employer
to continue to employ any number of persons employed by him in consequence of a dispute,
done with a view to compelling those persons, or to aid another employer in compelling persons
employed by him, to accept terms of employment and physical conditions of work.
As in the case of strike action by employees, the exercise of the option of “lock–out” by the
employer is not automatic as he is required to issue “lock–out” notice to the affected employees
without which he will be liable for deprivation of work as contained in the contract of
employment.
The various options available to any of the aggrieved parties in a contract of employment like
strike action, picketing and “lock-out” have been discussed in the most simplified way available
and as could be noticed only the third option, “lock–out”, is in favour of the employer.
This is indicative of the fact that the whole gamut of our labour law is in favour of the employee.

SUMMARY
• The legal meaning and implication of strike action as an alternative to drive home the
employees demand.
• The legal effect of the issuance of strike notice by the employee on the employer.
• The significance of picketing.
• The effect of “lock-out” option as available to the employees.
• The various applicable statutes relevant to trade disputes.

TORTUOUS LIABILITY AND TRADE DISPUTES

Here we examine those areas of contracts of employment that may result in tortuous liability
either by the employee solely or on behalf of the employee as distinguished from various
liabilities. This examination will be in relation to trade disputes as governed and protected by the
relevant statutes.

Conspiracy
Torts could either be criminal or civil. In this unit the two types shall be
discussed with a view to determining how they relate to trade dispute.

a. Criminal conspiracy
In CROFTER HAND – WOVEN HARRIS TWEED CO. LTD V. VELTCH
(1942) A.C.435, Viscount Simmonds stated that:
Conspiracy, when regarded as a crime, is the agreement of two ormore persons to effect any
unlawful purpose, whether as their ultimate aim, or only as a means to it, and the crime is
complete. if there is such agreement, even though nothing is done in pursuance of it.
At common law, the agreement of two or more persons to do any unlawful act by an unlawful
means is in itself a crime; in Nigeria, for such an agreement to constitute criminal conspiracy the
act done, or the means adopted by the conspirators must be an offence, defined and the penalty
for it prescribed, in a written law.
See section 36 (12) of the 1999 constitution
See also AOKO V. FAGBEMI {1961} 1 ALL C.L.R. 400 and
section 518 A (1) of the criminal code cap 77, L.F.N.1990. However, it is important to state that
offence, under section 518A (1) C.C. does not include an offence punishable only by a fine. Thus
the agreement of two or more members or officials of a trade union to do an act prohibited by
sections 516-518 C.C. in contemplation or in furtherance of a trade dispute will not amount to
criminal conspiracy if the act is not an offence punishment with imprisonment.
b. Civil conspiracy
Conspiracy as a tort has different forms, viz. conspiracy to effect an unlawful act and conspiracy
to injure. The difference between the civil conspiracy to effect an unlawful act and criminal
conspiracy is that, in the former, the agreement does not constitute conspiracy to be liable, the
conspirators must have done some act in pursuance of their agreement and to the damage of the
plaintiff.
On the other hand, criminal conspiracy is constituted by the agreement itself. There is no defence
at common law to civil conspiracy to effect an unlawful act. Conspiracy to injure does not
involve the use of any unlawful means, such as crime or tort, in effecting the purpose of the
conspirators, otherwise, it will cease to be conspiracy to injure and might become criminal
conspiracy or other form of civil conspiracy.
Therefore, the conspirators will be liable for the tort of conspiracy toinjure if their real or
predominant purpose is to inflict damage on another person in his trade.

Inducing Breach of Contract

There are two major forms of inducement which may result into breachof contract. These are
direct and indirect inducements. In direct inducement, the defendant personally intervenes in a
contractual relationship by persuading one of the contracting parties to break his contract with
the other party.In indirect inducement, the defendant does not use personal persuasion on one of
the contracting parties, but either does a wrongful act e.g. commits a breach of contract himself,
or procures a third party, for example, an employee of one of the contracting parties, to commit a
breach of his contract of employment as a result of which one of the contracting parties is
rendered incapable of performing his contractual obligations.
The highpoint of this rule is that in indirect inducement, to make the defendant liable, the
plaintiff must inter alia, prove the unlawful means employed by the defendant, while in indirect
inducement, it is the personal intervention that is wrongful act.

Elements of the tort

Three elements must be proved by the plaintiff against the defendant in order to succeed in an
action for inducing breach of contract.
I. Knowledge and intention
The plaintiff must prove that the defendant knew of the existence of the contract between the
plaintiff and the third party and intended to induce or procure its breach. It is not mandatory for
the plaintiff to prove that the defendant knew the exact terms of the contract.

II. Interference
The plaintiff must also prove that the action of the defendant which constitutes the undue
interference which induces the other contraction party was responsible for his action which
caused the breach of the contract between them. A mere call would not be sufficient inducement
while the offer of a higher pay by the defendant will be inducement or interference which may
procure the breach.

III. Breach and damage

The plaintiff must also prove that the inducement or interference causeda breach of contract and
that he has suffered damage consequently.

3.3 Defences
Some of the defences available to a defendant in tortious liability inrespect of trade dispute are as
follows:
i. Common law
At common law justification is a defence to the tort of inducing breach of contract. The defence
consists in the admission of the act complained of but with the plea that the defendant was
justified in action as he did and ought reasonably to be exercised having regard to the
surrounding circumstances.
Justification is a defence to the tort of conspiracy to injure, if the predominant purpose of the
conspirators, (who are usually officials and members of a trade union) is not to injure the
plaintiff but to forward and protect their legitimate interests. However, trade union‟s interests
have not been accepted by the courts as a justification for the tort ofinducing breach of contract.

ii. Statutory defences

See generally section 43(1) of the Trade Union Act, cap 437.
Note: For this defence to be negated it must be proved that:
a) The tort was committed in contemplation or in furtherance of a trade dispute.
b) The contract breached by the inducement was a contract of employment.
c) Breach of any other form of contract will not be protected.

iii. Intimidation
The general position of the law in respect of this defence is that it is what the defendant has
threatened to do that determines whether the tort of intimidation has been committed or not. If
what the defendant has threatened to do is unlawful, he would be liable to the party who has
suffered damage as a result of the person threatened complying with the threat.
However, if what the defendant has threatened of do is what he has a right to do, that is, when no
unlawful means is involve, he would not have committed the tort intimidation even thought a
party has suffered damage as a result of the person threatened complying with the threat.

Section 23 of Cap. 437

The Trade Unions Act, cap 437, LFN, 1990 provides a variety of protection to unionists in the
exercise of the rights and protection of`their members. Of particular importance is the protection
granted by section 43(1) of the Trade Union Act.
In the same vein, section 23 of the Act provides the union itself absolute immunity from tortious
liabilities provided, of course, the liabilities arose from torts committed in contemplation or in
furtherance of a trade dispute.
Section 23(1) of the Trade Union Act reads:
An action against a trade union {whether of workers or employers} in respect to any tortious act
alleged to have been committed by or on behalf of the trade union in contemplating or
in furtherance to a trade dispute shall not be entertained by any court in Nigeria.
Section 23(2) of the Trade Union Act reads: Subsection (1) of this section includes both to an
action in its registered name and to any action against one or more persons as representatives of a
trade union.
The following points are deducible from the foregoing provision:
i. It is the trade union as a registered association under the Trade Unions Act, that is, protected.
Agents of the union whether officials or members are not protected.
ii. Protection is given to the union whether it is being sued in its registered name or in a
representative capacity.
iii. A trade union is not debarred from suing for torts committed against it.
iv. There is protection only when a trade dispute is contemplated or being furthered.
Trade Dispute
This section will deal with the substance of trade dispute.
What is a trade dispute?
Section 52 of the Trade Unions Act, cap 437 and section 47(1) of the Trade Disputes Act, cap
432, LFN 1990 respectively define a “trade dispute” as:
Any dispute between employer and worker or between workers and employers, which is
connected with the employment or non-employment, or the terms of employment and physical
conditions of work of any person.
From the foregoing definition, for there to be a trade dispute, the following must be present.
i. The dispute must be between proper parties i.e. between employer and workers or between
workers and employers.
ii. The subject matter of the dispute must involve any of the following:
a) Employment or non-employment, or
b) Terms of employment; or
c) Condition of work of any person.
“In contemplation” or “in furtherance” of a trade dispute
A. “In contemplation”
This has been defined as an act done in contemplation of a trade dispute. However, it has been
held that for a trade dispute to be in contemplation or imminent, there must first be a demand
made on employers by employees or their union and the employer must have rejected the
demand even though no active dispute has yet arisen.
Therefore, a trade dispute is in contemplation once a demand is made on an employer by his
employees and has been rejected, prior to the employees taking industrial action in pursuance of
their demand.

B. “In furtherance”
The law is that once a trade dispute has become active, through industrial action, an act is done
in furtherance of that dispute if it was done with the purpose of helping one of the parties to a
trade dispute to achieve its objectives in it.
The test to be applied in determining whether an act was done in furtherance of a trade dispute is
subjective, rather than objective. By this way the real motive of the disputing parties could be
easily uncovered.

SUMMARY
Efforts has been made to expand the knowledge of the
student with a view to understanding the fact that no contract of
employment is devoid of problems when it comes to the point of
implementation of the terms. There following points have been aptly
discussed in this unit:
• Basic concept of torts in relation to trade disputes and trade unionism.
• Criminal and civil conspiracies distinguished.
• Effect of inducement that causes a breach of contract in a contract of employment.
• Elements of the tort of conspiracy.
• Available defences to the defendant.
• Protection offered the unionists and the unions by the enabling acts.
• Meaning of a trade disputes.
• Relevance of acts done “in contemplation” and “in furtherance” of a trade dispute.

SETTLEMENT OF TRADE DISPUTES

The basic law in relation to settlement of industrial or trade dispute is the provision of section
17(1) of the Trade Disputes Act, cap 432, LFN, 1990. This section provides thus:
An employee shall not declare or take part in a lock – out and a worker shall not take part in a
strike in connection with a trade dispute where;
a) The procedure specified in section 3 or 5 of this Act has not been complied with in relation to
the dispute; or
b) A conciliator has been appointed under section 7 of this Act for the purpose of effecting a
settlement of the dispute; or
c) The dispute has been referred for settlement to the industrial panel under section 8 of this act,
or
d) An award by an arbitration tribunal has become binding under section 12(3) of this act; or
e) The dispute has subsequently been referred to the National Industrial Court under section
13(1) or 16 of this act; or
f) The National Industrial Court has issued an award on the reference.
Section 17(2) provides for the punishment on anyone who contravenes the provision of section
17(1) of the Act. The effect of section 17(1) of the Trade Disputes Act sets the headings to be
discussed under the main body part of this unit.

The Parties
The existence of a dispute or disagreement necessarily means there areparties to the dispute or
disagreement. Normally, it requires a minimum of two parties to have a dispute. In the case of
industrial disputes, it could arise between employer and worker or worker and worker.
Section 52 of the Trade Union Act defines who a worker is and a similar definition is contained
in Section 1 of the Workmen‟s Compensation Act.
Section 43(1)(c) of Trade Union Act is to the effect that a worker in respect of whom a dispute
arises need not be in the employer‟s business. Naturally, human interaction especially in an
industrial setting must of necessity, in certain circumstances and under certain conditions,
produce conflict or dispute, despite the virtual prohibition of strikes and lockouts by Section
17(1) of the Trade Disputes Act.
The simple implication of the foregoing exposition is that for there to be an industrial conflict or
trade dispute there must be an employer and an employee making up the parties to the dispute.

Arbitration
Despite this virtual prohibition of strike and lock-outs, there have been strikes and lock outs.
There is no doubt that the intervention of a third party will be inevitable where the machinery of
collective bargaining process is inadequate. The government has often intervened by providing
the required machinery as exemplified by the enactment in 1941 of the Trade Disputes
(arbitration and inquiry) Act which vests the power for the resolution of industrial disputes in the
government.
However, the Act contains some limitation in that the powers of the government could be
exercised only where the collective parties consent to their use. In effect, the Minister of Labour
can neither appoint a conciliator nor set up an arbitration tribunal for the dispute unless the
parties so request.
Once a dispute has been referred to the arbitration panel, the chairman constitutes an arbitration
tribunal from among the members of the panel.
The tribunal may consist of:
a) A sole arbitrator; or
b) A sole arbitrator assisted by assessors; or
c) One or more arbitrators under the presidency of the chairman orvice-chairman.
An arbitration tribunal has twenty one days, or such longer period as may be allowed by the
minister, to make an award. The award it not communicated to the parties but to the minister,
who notifies the parties of the award.
The parties have seven days from the date of the notification to object to the award. In the
absence of any objection, the minister is bound to confirm the award by a notice of confirmation
of the award published in the Federal Gazette. With the confirmation of the award, it becomes
binding on the parties concerned. See section 8, 12 and 13 of the Trade Disputes Act in relation
to arbitration.
In order to facilitate the speedy settlement of trade disputes, and to free the panel from suspicion,
the disputants should and are usually allowed direct access to the panel and thereafter to the
National Industrial Court. Industrial tribunal gives its award in the open and the award is binding
from the day it was made or such other date as may be specified in the order.

The National Industrial Court

Section 19 of the Trade Disputes Act establishes the National Industrial Court. The court has a
president and four other members. The members of the court are appointees of the President of
Nigeria after consultation with the Federal Judicial Service Commission.
One of the basic requirements of a candidate for the post of the president of the court is that such
person must either have been a High Court Judge or a person qualified to practice as a Solicitor
and advocate in Nigeria and has been so qualified for not less than ten years.
The court deals with matters referred to it with the assistance of assessors who shall consist of
two nominees of the employers concerned chosen from a panel of employers representative
drawn by the minister under section 43 of the Act, and two nominees of the workers concerned,
chosen from a panel of workers representatives.
The Jurisdiction of the Court
The power and authority to adjudicate on industrial and trade disputes is conferred on the
National Industrial Court by the provision of section 20 of Trade Disputes Act. This section
confers exclusive jurisdiction on the court to make award for the purpose of settling trade
disputes and determining questions as to the interpretation of any collective agreement, any
award made by an arbitration tribunal or by the court itself under part 1 of the Act or the terms of
settlement of any trade dispute as recorded in any memorandum under section 7 of the Act. By
virtue of section 20 (3) of the Act, no appeal shall lie to any other court or person from any
determination of the National Industrial Court. In the same vein, in spite of the unlimited powers
of state High Courts, they have no jurisdiction in industrial or trade dispute matters. This is
however inconsistent with the provisions of section 272 (1) of the 1999 constitution which
confers unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction on State High Courts and has been said to be
void to the extent of that inconsistency. This issue was canvassed at the Supreme Court in
W.S.W.
LTD V. IRON of STEEL WORKERS UNION OF NIGERIA [1987] L.N.S.C.C. 133. In that case,
the apex court declared section 20 of the Trade Disputes Act as void to the extent of its
inconsistency with the 1999 Constitution.

Enforcement of award
The National Industrial Court, under section 20(1) of the Act, has thirty working days within
which to determine any dispute referred to it. The award of the court becomes binding on the
employers and workers concerned either from the date of the award or from such date as may be
specified in the order.
The Court, as well as the Industrial Arbitration Panel , are not only empowered to enforce their
awards but also to commit for contempt any person or a representative of a trade union who does
any act or commits any omission which in the opinion of the court or the panel constitutes
contempt of the court or panel.

CONCILLIATION AND ARBITRATION

Conciliator
It is the first type of mechanism bearing upon the settlement of disputes in industrial relations. The
idea is aimed at the prevention and settlement of trade disputes where a difference arises between
employers and workmen or between different classes of workmen.
The purpose of this aspect of law is to enquire into the circumstances of the dispute and to take such
steps as may be expedient to bring the parties together under the presidency of a conciliator mutually
agreed upon or nominated by some other persons or body with a view to settling the dispute
amicably. On the application of the interested employers or the employees and after taking into
account existing means of conciliation, a conciliator or a board of conciliators is appointed.
The aggrieved party can proceed to the board of conciliators for proper and efficient conciliation on
the dispute. The power to appoint a conciliator can be by either of the party while that of the
arbitrator can be exercised on the application of both parties. The main purpose of the use of
conciliator is confined to the effort to bring the parties together in the hope that a common discussion
will reveal a means of settlement acceptable to both parties.
The issue of conciliation dates back to the history of Labour Law world over.
Arbitration
The arbitrator generally fulfils a judicial role. He is concerned withlaws and facts and the parties
before the submission to arbitration normally agree, in advance, to accept and act upon his findings.
Despite the virtual prohibition of strike and lock outs, there have been strikes and lock outs. There is
no doubt that the intervention of a third party will be inevitable Where the machinery of collective
bargaining process is inadequate. The government has often intervened by providing the required
machinery as exemplified by the enactment of the Trade Disputes {Arbitration and Inquiry} Act
which vests the power for the resolution of industrial disputes in the government.
However, the Act contains some limitation in that the powers of the government could be exercised
only where the collective parties consent to their use. In effect, the Minister of Labour could neither
appoint a conciliator nor set up an arbitration tribunal for the disputes unless the parties so requested.
Once a dispute has been referred to the Arbitration Panel, the chairman constitutes an arbitration
tribunal from among the members of the panel.
The tribunal may consist of;
(a) A sole arbitrator; or
(b) A sole arbitrator assisted by assessors; or
(c) One or more arbitrators under the presidency of the chairman and vice-chairman.
An arbitration tribunal has twenty-one days, or such longer period as may be allowed by the minister,
to make an award. The award is not communicated to the parties but to the minister, who notifies the
parties of the award. The parties have seven days from the date of the notification to object tothe
award. In the absence of any objection, the minister is bound to confirm the award by a notice of
confirmation of the award published in the Federal Gazette. With the confirmation of the award, it
becomes binding on the parties concern.

The result is that in normal circumstances the decision of an arbitrator may, by the leave of the court
or a judge, be enforced in the same manner as a judgement. See the provision of sections 8, 12 and 13
of the trade Disputes Act in relation to Arbitration. In order to facilitate the speedy settlement of
trade disputes, and to free the panel from suspicions, the disputants should and are usually allowed
direct access to the panel and thereafter to the National Industrial Court. It is further suggested that
an industrial tribunal should give its award in the open and the award should be binding from the day
it was made or such other date as may be specified in the order.

Emergency Procedure
This is the procedure necessary in times of urgency in a situation of strikes or lock out which may
cause an interruption in the supply of goods or foods, provisions of services of such a nature or on
such a scale that it is likely to be gravely injurious to national security, create a serious risk of
disorder, endanger lives of a substantial number of persons or expose a substantial number of persons
to serious risk of disease or personal injury. This is done where the state is of the opinion that such
conditions exist as a result of a strike or irregular industrial action short of a strike or of a lock out
having begun or being likely to begin and that it would be conducive to settlement by negotiation,
conciliation or arbitration if this action were discontinued or differed. In this instance an application
may be sent to the Industrial Court, which must specify the persons apparently responsible for the
action or threatened action.
These become parties to the proceedings. The process of emergency procedure is referred to the
Industrial Court and the court has to satisfy itself that there is indeed an Emergency situation that
requires the attention of the court. It could make an order specifying the area of employment to
which it shall apply, the parties to be bound, the effective date and the period it is to last. The term of
the order must only be made to parties with responsibilities, prohibit the calling, organising,
procuring or financing of a strike, or any irregular industrial action short of a strike or threatening to
do so.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
Collective Bargaining is defined as any agreement made in anyway and in any form by and on behalf
of trade unions and employers. It is also the process through which the antithetical interests of
employers and employees are harmonized through discussions and negotiations.

Properties of Collective bargaining

Consists of negotiations between an employer and a group of employees so as to determine
conditions of service. Employees are often represented in bargaining by an elected group or body,
called a union or other labour organisation. Collective bargaining is usually regulated by federal laws
and by administrative agency regulations and judicial decisions. Employees generally have a right to
collectively bargain and join trade unions and this is generally applicable to both public and private
sector. It may be defined as the process of working out a modus operandi between two parties -
employer and trade union organizations in matters relating to both parties.3 Or it may be seen as the
process through which a Labour Union and an employer negotiate the scope of the employment
relationship. Its ultimate goal is entering into a collective bargaining agreement. This will typically
contain but not be limited to the following: wages, work hours, benefits, handling of disputes, other
employment terms and employment centred issues. The agreement, in and of itself cannot be
completely exhaustive, thus, it may be and oftentimes is usually read in conjunction with established
customs and practices (written and unwritten) and informal agreements. It is however noteworthy
that it is limited in scope and authority by enactments, thus it would be limited by the act and also in
scope, to the extent that it cannot accomplish what the law would ordinarily prohibit by agreement or
deny for instance employees of rights they would otherwise enjoy under law. It cannot also be used
to waive rights or obligations imposed by law on other parties. For example, an employer cannot use
collective bargaining to reduce the level of safety standards
it must follow with regards to a particular profession.
However, notes that the basic aim of collective bargaining is to encourage negotiation and eventual
enforcement among parties. One very important major aspect of this concept is that the terms of
employment are usually contained in those rules which regulate such matters as wages, hours of
work, holidays, holiday pay, sick pay, overtime and redundancy. However, the procedural function of
this concept has been subdivided into the various heads that form the main body of this unity.

Legal Status of a Collective Bargain

In an early study on the concept of collective bargaining in England 4,collective bargaining was
described as the main instrument used by employees and government institutions in industry to sort
out their differences through negotiations which ultimately enabled them to achieve a compromise
between the claims of employers and their perceived right to exercise unilateral control over the
employment environment and employees during and after work hours.
Under Nigerian law, the Labour Act describes collective bargaining as the process of arriving at
collection agreements. Collective bargaining represents the backbone of the employer/employee
relationship. It is widely accepted as the most important instrument for the determination of wages,
employment conditions and the regulations of the employer -employee relations. In practice,
collective bargaining is a process of obtaining concessions and reaching compromises on
employment and working conditions. As a tool for the practice of Industrial Relations, collective
bargaining may be interpreted as a process of interest accommodation through direct or indirect
bipartite and tripartite negotiations.
In its narrow sense, it may be viewed as a process of negotiation between employers individually or
as a group, and trade unions. The outcome of such negotiations is an obligatory document, a
collective agreement that determines wages and other conditions of work. Importantly, the concept
of collective bargaining has expanded considerably in recent years to encompass more than just the
negotiation of collective agreements. It involves a continuous process of discussion, consultation and
bargaining between employers and workers on a wide framework of economic policies globally.
Though Collective bargaining constitutes an important means by which workers seek to satisfy their
economic and social interests and is seemingly crucial to the attainment of industrial peace in
Nigeria. A collective bargain in and of itself though highly persuasive in reaching future agreements
and interpreting the terms of a collective agreement is not legally enforceable. It may at best be
submitted as evidence to support proof of the intention of the parties to the bargain. Nigeria Labour
Law provides for automatic recognition of trade unions for collective bargaining purposes (see the
Labour Act). This means that the employer must recognize registered trade unions in his
establishment and bargaining with such unions in their bid to safeguard their economic interests in
employment. The duty to recognise a trade union is conterminous with the duty to negotiate with it
and conclude agreements.
Thus, a refusal by an employer to recognise and bargain with a union or adhere to the agreement
arrived at could lead to strikes by workers to realize such improvements in working conditions.

Legal Effect of a Collective Bargain on a Contract of Employment

The collective bargain often defines the frame work for a collective agreement. It is the basis on
which a collective agreement is reached and entered into between the parties to the negotiations.
Though the process itself maybe sometimes involuntary5 it is the forum by which parties to the
negotiation „voluntarily‟ reach agreement on a wide range of „employee/employer‟ issues which
most probably will not be accomplished by one-on –one bargaining. Members of a union or a
profession who are not parties to the collective bargaining process can ordinarily benefit from and
enjoy the duties, responsibilities and benefits accruing from a collective bargaining process once an
agreement has been reached by incorporation of the provisions into their contracts of employment. It
is noteworthy that incorporation maybe express, implied or bystatute. See: In U.B.N. LTD v. EDET
[1993] 4. N.W.L.R {part 287} 288.

COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT:

Collective Agreement: The practise of collective bargaining resulting in collective agreement has
been in existence from as far back as employer and employee relationship existed. It is generally
regarded as an agreement between an employer and a union usually reached through collective
bargaining which establishes wage rates, hours of labour and working conditions. It has also been
defined as6 a written, legally enforceable contract for a specified period (usually one year), between
the management of an organization and its employees represented by an independent trade union. It
sets down and defines conditions of employment (wages, working hours and conditions, overtime
payments, holidays, vacations, benefits, etc.) and procedures for dispute resolution. It is also referred
to as a labour agreement, union agreement, or union contract.

They may be regarded as oral or written contracts entered into between an employer or group of
employers and a union that is negotiating on behalf of all of the employees that the union represents.
In a business context, a collective agreement typically includes any wages, hours, benefits, rules or
working conditions that have been mutually agreed upon. A collective agreement is statutorily
defined as any agreement or arrangement made by or on behalf of one or more trade unions and one
or more employers, or employers‟ associations, which relates to one or more of the matters
mentioned in S178(2) TULRCA 1992.
See Edinburgh Council V Brown (1999) IRLR 208: where an agreement between the employer
and the joint consultative committee constituted a collective agreement.

Recognition Agreement:
The fundamental basis of collective agreement is the Recognition Agreement, which deals first and
foremost with the recognition by an employer or association of employers of a specific trade union or
a group of trade unions, as the sole bargaining agent for the employees within the bargaining unit in
relation to terms and conditions of employment. Conversely, where recognition is not given or is
withdrawn, the union will not be able, on behalf of its members, to bargain with an employee or
employers association. In Nigeria, the recognition of registered trade union is a matter of statutory
obligation for employers, provided that a trade union has more than one of its members in the
employment of an employer.
See. NATIONAL UNION OF GOLD, SILVER AND ALLIED TRADE vALBURY BROTHERS
LTD [1929] I.C.R. 84.
In that case, Eveleish, L.J. held, inter alia, that recognition entailed not merely a willingness to
discuss but also to negotiate, that is, negotiate with a view to striking a bargain. Dispute may arise in
the absence of any clear stipulations in the recognition agreement of matters for negotiation and for
consultation.
See; NIGERIAN BREWERIES LTD v NIGERIAN BREWERIESMANAGEMENT
ASSOCIATION [1978-9] N.I.C.R. [H.I] 35

Procedural Agreement
Collective agreement includes the machinery for consultation regarding the settlement of terms,
conditions of employment, procedures or stages which the collective parties to the bargaining must or
ought to exhaust before embarking on an industrial action and dismissal procedures. The procedural
agreements otherwise called the Disputes procedures are usually worded as follows;“It is agreed that
in the event of any difference arising which cannot be immediately disposed of then whatever
practice or agreement existed prior to the difference shall continue to operate pending a settlement or
until the agreed procedure has been exhausted”. A clue from the foregoing example points to the fact
that the bane of most industrial actions embarked upon by labour leaders in Nigeria through the
Nigerian Labour Congress has been as a result of inability of negotiating parties to strike a bargain.

Parties to a Collective Agreement

For an agreement to be valid it requires a minimum of two parties, the issue of collective agreement
is no way different from the doctrine. It is clear that parties to a collective agreement are the trade
union ofemployees and either an employer or an association of employers.
See; D.C & Co. Ltd v. Deakin (1952) 2 All ER361.
BURTON GROUP LTD v. SMITH {1977] I.R.L.R. 351.
The parties on the employers side would constitute and the following: a union represented by
a trade union, union chambers and on the employee side employee unions e.t.c.

Legal Status of Collective Agreement

The legal significance of a collective agreement has always been uncertain. Some courts have called
it a mere gentlemen's agreement, unenforceable at law; it has been likened to a treaty between parties
that becomes enforceable by the parties themselves taking steps to execute it and give it the
characteristics of a legally enforceable document. It has been viewed rather, as a mere schedule of
terms and commitments, which become part of the individual workers' contracts of employment,
whether or not they belong to the union. Insofar as the collective agreement is a contract at all, it has
to be one between the employer and the union. This has led to confusion, since most unions are not
incorporated and thus cannot be legal parties to contracts. And if they are not legally recognized
parties, they cannot act as plaintiffs in law suits to enforce these so-called contracts; nor can they be
sued on them.
In recent years, however, collective agreements are beginning to be recognized as legally binding
contracts.
This development means that unions may secure rights for themselves in contracts, over and above
the rights secured for their constituents, with the legal power to sue for the enforcement of these
rights. This recognition of unions as legal persons, capable of acting as parties to contracts and
lawsuits, has largely been the result of legislation.
A collective agreement is presumed not to be a legally enforceable contract by the parties, unless the
agreement is in writing and contains a provision that the parties intend for it to be legally
enforceable. The parties may declare that only one or more parts of the agreement are intended to be
legally enforceable. It should not be assumed that a collective agreement is legally binding simply
because it declares the parties intention to create legal relations due to the existence of vague or
uncertain contracts.
The fundamental question to be asked under this head is “Are collective agreements legally
enforceable contracts or are they only binding in honour?” In other words, can a trade union or either
an employer or an employers‟ association legally enforce a collective agreement to which it is a
party? It is submitted that in the absence of statutory imposition of enforceability of collective
agreement or where such intention cannot be discerned by the court, such an agreement will not be
enforced.
Several judicial pronouncements have been made on this issue but the locus classicus is FORD
MOTOR CO.LTD v. AMALGAMATED UNIONOF ENGINEERING AND FOUNDRY WORKERS
{1968] 2.Q.B.303,were it was held, inter alia, that collective agreements themselves cannotbe termed
as contracts in law as the parties do not intend to be legally bound by it.

The Impact of Statute on the Enforcement of CollectiveAgreement

The primary law governing trade disputes in Nigeria is the Trade Unions Act, Cap 437, Law of the
Federation of Nigeria, 1990. Students are enjoined to read and digest the provision of section
22(1),(2) and (3) of the Trade Union Act, 1990.
However, the general purpose of this provision of the law is that any collective agreement between
two trade unions may constitute a valid contract where the parties so intend.
Therefore, the basic element to be considered in circumstances where the question of the ability to
bind and the enforceability of agreement between two trade unions arises is that of intention of the
parties and the statute books.

Collective Agreements and Contracts of Employment

The question most frequently asked is; can an employee directly enforce the terms of a collective
agreement, though he was not a party to it?In U.B.N. LTD v. EDET [1993] 4.N.W.L.R {part 287}
288, the plaintiff contended that her dismissal was wrongful because it was in breach of a collective
agreement between her employer and her trade union. It was held, inter alia, that it is not for an
individual employee to found a course of action on them agreement to which she was not a party.
However, the court, in that same case, propounded the three methods of effecting such agreement
provided it was incorporated into the contract of employment between the employee and the
employers as follows:
1. Express Incorporation.
2. Implied Incorporation.
3. Incorporation by statutes.
The above exceptions are easily discernible and understandable in viewof the facts that these
concepts have been discussed earlier.

FRAME WORK AND NATURE OF COLLECTIVE AGREEMENTS

Collective bargaining, in reality forms the substitution of bilateral for unilateral decisions in the field
of management of labour relations. It normally leads to a collective labour agreement between the
negotiating parties. The entire process, from the union's demands to enforcement of the contract,
occurs in a complicated issue of law versus reality and practicality.
Many are impatient with the law, saying that it defeats the purpose of true collective bargaining
especially in Nigeria where government institutions have found a way to circumvent the formation of
trade unions by their workers! But all conflicts of interest must be governed by laws of some kind.
This is especially true of the struggle for power going on within the labour relations arena. The law
must set a limit on the manner in which this struggle is conducted. Then it must define the proper
objectives of this conflict for power.
Most people probably do not think of collective bargaining as recourse to economic pressures. But
the union's best bargaining tools are the strike, the boycott and the picket line all with resultant and
clear economic repercussions. It is this process that is defined as the legal framework of collective
bargaining and its resultant collective agreement.

The legal framework of the collective agreements: The ideology seems to be that management has
it to give and the employees have it to get; and that the unions are there to see that they get it. This
implies that the recognised parties to the agreement are
i. management and
ii. the unions and that anything they agree upon is all right.
The bargaining process is seen as a compromise between management willingness, based on the
ownership and control of property and the union‟s monopoly of labour on the other. The agreement
represents the whittling down of management's rights due to collective bargaining.
Most of these concessions are made on behalf of the employees, to govern the terms of their personal
contracts of employment, and are not promises of benefits to the union in reality. The only advantage
to the unions perhaps is recognition, some form of union security and the right to initiation fees and
union dues, with possible controls over apprenticeship. For breaches of these commitments, unions
have been permitted to maintain actions against employers, including suits. The employees
themselves have to sue for the enforcement of the other terms of these agreements, concerning
wages, seniority e.t.c.

Management
Management is the group responsible for the profitable operation of production and distribution
systems within the economy. Thus it represents all those who live by wages and salaries earned from
employment in production and distribution enterprises. Thus the relationship of trust fostered on
„management‟ involves them in a very high level of responsibility towards the entire economy
including employees, employers and all ancillary stakeholders and in the discharge of this
responsibility, „management‟ cannot insist on the freedom to do what it finds most convenient thus
the need for a legal regulatory framework.

This includes aspects such as:

i. The protection of individual workers from arbitrary treatment
ii. Bargaining within the laws and rules that guide development of employers associations,
administered prices, labour monopolies, industry wide bargaining and wage pattern setting.
iii. The protection offered by „amici curiae‟.
iv. Application of good faith in bargaining by both parties.
v. The duty of disclosure.
vi. Enforceability or otherwise of parts of the agreement.

Employers Associations.

An Employers association is an organisation that consists wholly or mainly of employers of

individual proprietors whose primary purposes include regulation of relationships between employers
and workers. Or organisations and representative wholly or mainly of constituent or affiliated with
the above purposes.

Trade Unions
Trade Unions have been denied as organisations whether permanent or temporary which consist of
workers whose primary purpose includes but is not necessarily limited to the regulation of
relationships between workers and employers or employers‟ associations or constituent or affiliated
organisations with those purposes or representatives of such organisations. See the Labour Act.
A trade union cannot take any step for the purposes of which it has been formed unless it has
been registered. Although the Trade Union Act does not expressly vest corporate personality
on a trade union, the question, nonetheless is whether a trade union is, by indications a legal
entity.
One of the fundamental attributes of a legal entity is the ability to sueand be sued. The
English House of Lords held in TAFF VALE RAKWAYCO. v. AMALGAMATED SOCIETY
OF RAILWAY SERVANTS {1901}AC.426 that:
If the legislature has created a thing which can own property, which can employ servants, and
which can inflict injury, it must be taken to have impliedly given the power to make it suitable
in a court of law for injuries purposely there by its authority and procurement “There has not
been any dissenting view or opinion on this subjectinvolving trade unions both in England and in
Nigeria since the decision in the case cited above and this is indicative of the fact that given the right
and adorations of a registered trade union, a refusal to call it a “legal entity” may be the result of a
mere dislike of a terminology.

RECOGNITION OF TRADE UNIONS & DUTY OF DISCLOSURE.

In independent trade union must be recognised by the employer to benefit from union rights.
Recognition in relation to trade union means the recognition by an employer or two or more
associated employers for the purpose of collective bargaining. 11“

It means the acknowledgement of the Union by an employer or two or more associated employers to
any extent for the purposes of collective bargaining. The question of recognition is one for the
employment tribunal or courts to decide. It may be inferred from consultations on discipline and or
facilitation for union representatives despite the absence of a formal agreement.
See: NUGSAT V ALBURY BROS (1978) IRLR 504.
See: J WILSON AND ALBURY BROS V USDAW (1978) IRLR 20.

Employers Duty to disclose.

Both parties have a duty to disclose to their various representatives on request, all such information
relating to their undertakings as is in their procession or that of any employee or employer. Any
undertakings without which the union representative would be to a material extent impeded in
carrying out such collective bargaining and any information which it would be in accordance with
good industry relationship practise to disclose ought to be disclosed by the parties.
The Union has a right to information on matters not directly connected with the bargain but it must
relate to matters in respect of which the Union is recognised.
In R v CAC ex parte BTP Tioxide (1982) IRLR 61, the High Court held that the CAC had
misdirected itself in concluding that the union was entitled to information relating to a job, evaluation
scheme in respect of which it had no bargaining rights but only the right to represent itself and its
members. Information to be disclosed must be relevant and important where disclosure may lead to
substantial injury, redress to unions for failure to disclose.
.