Tension As Lagos Water Corporation Lays Off 450 Workers

Afimag.com –

Fear and anxiety gripped workers of the Lagos State Water Corporation as the state government relieved 450 casual workers of their jobs last week.

The retrenchment took place on Thursday. The affected staff members were served with sack letters on Tuesday and were mandated to return all the government properties in their possessions.

It was learnt that the decision to drop the workers shocked some of the staff members who were not affected by the action of the government.

Some of the workers who spoke with our correspondent who paid a visit to one of the state waterworks on December 07, 2023, expressed fear that they might suffer a similar fate.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a staff member told our Correspondent that many of the laid-off staff members had spent several years working with the corporation.

She said, “Nobody knew this was going to happen. We were all shocked that a large number of people could be sacked in a day. Currently, these waterworks no longer have casual workers.

“One of my friends was affected by the decision. She has a family she is taking care of. She doesn’t even know where to start. She left the office weeping last week. Even if they are going to sack anyone, they should have given people more time to find alternatives.”

Investigations proved that the workers were laid off due to a claim that the state government wanted to undergo restructuring despite the current shortage of staff.

However, when contacted for his reaction, the Public Relations Officer, Lagos State Water Corporation, Kehinde Fashola, confirmed that some workers were laid off because they breached the contract of agreement.

“The government found out that the Lagos Water management contract staff members have not been in accordance with the contract appointment law. Some of them have been contract staff for 10 years and some for five years, which is not in accordance with the country’s labour law.”