House C’ttee Orders Sack of 22 Intels Expatriates

The House of Representatives Committee on Local Content has
recommended the the sack of 22 expatriate staff of Intels Nigeria
Limited following the company’s flagrant violation of the local
content law.

It further directed that the affected staff be deported and that
12 Nigerian workers hitherto sacked by the management on grounds of
redundancy be reinstated with immediately effect, with their full
entitlements paid.

Intels had been under investigation by the committee, chaired by
Hon. Emmanuel Ekon (PDP, Akwa Ibom), following a petition by the
sacked staff who alleged unjust termination of their appointments
and subsequent employment of expatriates to take over their
jobs.

They argued the company’s action constituted a gross violation
of the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Act
2010 and expatriate quota racketeering.

However, Ekon, in his report said the company systematically
embarked on the disengagement of their Nigerian workers under the
guise of declaring redundancy but turned around to hire foreigners
who received higher remuneration to do the same job.

He said:”Sometime in 2015 and 2016, Intels declared redundancy
in accordance with the Nigerian Labor Act in respect of which
Nigerian indigenous staff of junior, middle and senior/management
cadre made up of 414 junior staff, 285 senior staff and 21
management staff totaling 1245 staff altogether were made redundant
and laid off.

However, their positions were immediately taken up by new
expatriate staff of different nationalities employed by Intels
contrary to the Nigerian Labor Act, Nigerian Content Development
Act, the Nigerian Immigration Act and equity and good
conscience.”

The committee, further queried the company for misleading them
into believing that they laid off the Nigerian workers to save cost
when in the real sense their motive was to employ foreigners that
received higher pay which made the country to lose huge sums of
money to capital flight.

Intels was also indicted for engaging in quota racketeering by
obtaining quotas with one position and using it to falsify
immigration documents that made it possible for expatriates to
lawfully remain employed in Nigeria.
Its failure to get proper documentation from the Nigerian Content
Board in respect of expatriates employed was a violation of the
law.

Ekon said: “The Committee has come to the very painful
conclusion that Intels is in violation of at least four separate
extant laws of Nigeria. The so called redundancy exercise was in
fact a monumental and mindless ruse to get rid of qualified and
able Nigerians from its work force in order to make it possible for
Intels to employ expatriate staff for the very same position that
had been officially declared redundant by Intels. That Intels claim
of cutting cost is not true as the cost of employing the
expatriates to replace Nigerians far outweighs the cost of keeping
the Nigerians employed.”

The committee added that during the painstaking probe, it was
revealed that no expatriate staff was affected by the purported
redundancy claim; rather, 16 new expatriate staff were employed in
2016.

It said there was brazen and incontrovertible evidence of
violations buttressed by documentary evidence and that its
recommendations should be implemented to serve as deterrence to
others.

The House of Representatives Committee on Local Content has
recommended the the sack of 22 expatriate staff of Intels Nigeria
Limited following the company’s flagrant violation of the local
content law.

It further directed that the affected staff be deported and that
12 Nigerian workers hitherto sacked by the management on grounds of
redundancy be reinstated with immediately effect, with their full
entitlements paid.

Intels had been under investigation by the committee, chaired by
Hon. Emmanuel Ekon (PDP, Akwa Ibom), following a petition by the
sacked staff who alleged unjust termination of their appointments
and subsequent employment of expatriates to take over their
jobs.

They argued the company’s action constituted a gross violation
of the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Act
2010 and expatriate quota racketeering.

However, Ekon, in his report said the company systematically
embarked on the disengagement of their Nigerian workers under the
guise of declaring redundancy but turned around to hire foreigners
who received higher remuneration to do the same job.

He said:”Sometime in 2015 and 2016, Intels declared redundancy
in accordance with the Nigerian Labor Act in respect of which
Nigerian indigenous staff of junior, middle and senior/management
cadre made up of 414 junior staff, 285 senior staff and 21
management staff totaling 1245 staff altogether were made redundant
and laid off.

However, their positions were immediately taken up by new
expatriate staff of different nationalities employed by Intels
contrary to the Nigerian Labor Act, Nigerian Content Development
Act, the Nigerian Immigration Act and equity and good
conscience.”

The committee, further queried the company for misleading them
into believing that they laid off the Nigerian workers to save cost
when in the real sense their motive was to employ foreigners that
received higher pay which made the country to lose huge sums of
money to capital flight.

Intels was also indicted for engaging in quota racketeering by
obtaining quotas with one position and using it to falsify
immigration documents that made it possible for expatriates to
lawfully remain employed in Nigeria.
Its failure to get proper documentation from the Nigerian Content
Board in respect of expatriates employed was a violation of the
law.

Ekon said: “The Committee has come to the very painful
conclusion that Intels is in violation of at least four separate
extant laws of Nigeria. The so called redundancy exercise was in
fact a monumental and mindless ruse to get rid of qualified and
able Nigerians from its work force in order to make it possible for
Intels to employ expatriate staff for the very same position that
had been officially declared redundant by Intels. That Intels claim
of cutting cost is not true as the cost of employing the
expatriates to replace Nigerians far outweighs the cost of keeping
the Nigerians employed.”

The committee added that during the painstaking probe, it was
revealed that no expatriate staff was affected by the purported
redundancy claim; rather, 16 new expatriate staff were employed in
2016.

It said there was brazen and incontrovertible evidence of
violations buttressed by documentary evidence and that its
recommendations should be implemented to serve as deterrence to
others.