AN APPRAISAL ON THE STATUS OF COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT IN THE NIGERIAN LABOUR AND INDUSTRIAL LAW

Abstract

The relationship between the employer and the employee is primarily governed by the individual contract of
employment and by the terms of any collective agreement reached between management as employer’s
representatives and union as workers representatives. Collective agreement refers to an agreement reached
between workers union and their employers, as a result of collective bargaining between the union and the
employers. The aim of this paper is to appraise the Nigerian law and practice as it relates to the status and
enforceability of collective agreements with a critical examination of available international and regional
human rights instruments as well as showcase the gaps under Nigerian legislation. In achieving this aim,
the researcher adopted doctrinal research method relying on primary and secondary sources of law. The work
found that collective agreements are generally not justiciable and devoid of sanction as there is no intention
to create legal relations by the parties, hence it is perceived as a gentleman’s agreement, a product of trade
union pressure. It is recommended that the Nigerian labour and industrial relations laws be reviewed to
align with international best labour practices by clearly providing for the interpretation and justiciability of
a collective agreement.