http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/10434-workers-ground-activities-at-union-bank-hqtrs-its-a-lie-mgt


ACTIVITIES at the head office of Union Bank were, on Monday, grounded to halt, following protests by the workers over sundry allegations against the interim management appointed for the bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The workers, wearing red armband and ready for the protest as early as 7.00 a.m, called for the sack of the entire management.

Their allegations were centred on mismanagement, transferring of unspecified amount of funds to the United Kingdom (UK) branch of another bank, ethnic cleansing, massive shedding of its work force without following due process and arbitrary increase of management staff salaries, among others.

According to a member of the local chapter of the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI), who pleaded anonymity, the workers had come to realise that the current leadership, appointed by the apex bank in August 2009, had no confidence in the bank they were meant to salvage.

He said recently, the new management transferred huge sums of money realised from genuine transactions to a UK account of another bank, as against Union Bank, which also had a subsidiary in that country.

The workers also alleged that the current management unilaterally increased their salaries against the business interest of the bank, adding that the sacked executive members earned less than what the new management currently earned.

Other allegations were the pension scheme, purchase of bullet proof cars for the executive directors and the sack and replacement of workers based on some ethnic considerations.

They, therefore, insisted they would not go back to work until the current management was sacked by the apex bank.

Nigerian Tribune gathered that the management was holding meeting with labour leaders drawn from the head office of ASSBIFI and National Union of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions Employment (NUBIFIE).

Reacting, Head Corporate Affair, Mr Francis Barde, who confirmed the meeting of staff with the management, however, denied that the bank was shut down.

“What you saw today are members of staff of the bank waiting to welcome officials of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), who were scheduled to meet with the banks management based on the allegations published in the papers last week.

Barde, however, declined to comment on the outcome of the NLC meeting with the bank’s management.