UK:Millions of UK workers at risk of being cheated out of pay, TUC warns

Mercy Lank

Five million workers across Britain’s supply chains risk being cheated out of their entitlement to holiday pay and the minimum wage, unions have warned. The Trades Union Congress (TUC) said on Monday that workers at outsourcing companies, franchises and recruitment agencies are vulnerable because they cannot challenge their parent employer if they do not receive their legal entitlements. It has called on the UK government to emulate , under which franchisors and holding companies can be held jointly responsible if their franchisees or subsidiaries do not follow workplace laws. The TUC general secretary, Frances O’Grady, said millions of UK workers – from fast-food outlets to building sites – cannot challenge their parent companies over workplace abuses. “Employers have a duty of care to workers in their supply chains. They shouldn’t be allowed to wash their hands of their responsibilities,” said O’Grady. “Joint liability must be extended to parent employers. Without it they can shrug their shoulders over minimum wage and holiday pay abuses.” About 3.3 million UK workers are employed through outsourced companies, 615,000 are employed by franchise businesses and at least 1 million are employed by recruitment agencies, umbrella companies and personal service companies.

From this month, workers aged 25 and over are entitled to at least £7.83 per hour, up from £7.50. But some employers have been failing to meet this obligation. Last month the government reported that , including the hotel group Marriott and the restaurant chain Wagamama. According to a new report from the TUC, more than half a million employees are being paid below national minimum wage rates and at least 2 million workers do not receive legal minimum paid holiday entitlements, worth £1.6bn in paid holiday per year. Government's Easter pay rise is not all it's cracked up to be Richard Partington Richard Partington Read more O’Grady plans to raise the issue with Sir David Metcalf, Britain’s first director of labour market enforcement. He was appointed last year with a mandate to crack down on unscrupulous employers. The government says it is already proposing “enhanced rights and protections” for workers in Britain’s supply chains. “Under the package of proposals, all 1.2 million agency workers will be able to request a more stable contract and receive a clear breakdown of their pay,” said a spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. “We are also considering repealing laws allowing agencies to employ workers on cheaper rates.”

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Turkmen president appoints son as deputy foreign minister

Mercy Lank

Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov’s son Serdar has been appointed deputy foreign minister following the whopping 91.4% of the cast vote that he officially won last week to retain his seat in Turkmenistan’s 'rubber stamp' parliament, Turkmen state-run media reported on March 31. Serdar Berdymukhamedov, 36, was appointed "by decree of the head of state", the announcement said. The development confirms the outlook of some Turkmenistan watchers who saw the parliamentary elections as a way to elevate Serdar’s status. Turkmen citizens voted for a new parliament on March 26 in an election dominated by three parties and some independents. However, all of the candidates supported President Berdymukhamedov, thus presenting no real opposition. Rumours about Serdar’s potential future as Turkmenistan's next president have long abounded among political analysts. Serdar has headed a parliamentary committee on legal affairs since March 2017. His recent meeting with Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev at a rare summit of Central Asian leaders - his father was away on visits to Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) attempting to raise investment for Turkmenistan, currently in the midst of an economic crisis - provided more evidence that this eventuality would occur. Prior to meeting with Serdar, Nazarbayev met with the leaders of each Central Asian country who attended the event. Considering that the official representative assigned to the event in place of the Turkmen president was the Turkmen parliament’s chairwoman Akja Nurberdyeva, Nazarbayev’s decision to meet with Berdymuhamedov’s son instead of Nurberdyeva appeared to underline the scenario of Serdar being groomed to succeed his father, commonly referred to as Arkadag, or “protector”, and officially described as overseeing an era of “might and happiness”. Little is publicly known about Serdar, but it is established that he trained as an agricultural engineer and later studied diplomacy in Russia and Switzerland. In January, the Washington-based Freedom House NGO assessed Turkmenistan as among the 12 “worst of the worst countries” for political freedom and civil liberties. None of the country’s previous elections have been deemed free or fair by Western monitors and Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov, who has run the former Soviet Republic since 2007 while tolerating no dissent, won his third presidential term in February last year with 97% of the vote. Most of the candidates in the election represented one of the three registered political parties. These are the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan (DPT, formerly the Communist Party), the Party of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, founded in 2012, and the Agrarian Party, founded in 2014, which took part in an election for the first time. A small number of candidates were put forward by public initiative groups. The parliamentary election took place with no sign that the country of six million’s worsening budget and economic predicament are improving. The budget woes have continuously mounted within recent months with alarm bells sounding over scarce hard currency. The Turkmen government has adopted multiple desperate measures to rescue the country’s budget including completely suspending Visa cards; ending the era of discounted gas, water and electricity prices for citizens; making contributions to Turkmenistan’s Pension Fund by business owners mandatory from 1 January; and even imposing more fines on car owners and Turkmen fortune tellers, whose occult services are popular in Turkmenistan. President Berdimuhamedov's trip to the Middle East secured a number of agreements, largely with the UAE. The Kuwait part of the tour did not appear to bear much fruit. Officially reported Turkmen growth in 2017 stood at 6.5%, although the real state of the Turkmen economy is likely worse than in recent years, as continuous reports about the depleted Turkmen budget have shown. The impact of low oil prices has taken a damaging toll on the monetary value of Turkmenistan's gas and oil exports, while a row over historical debts with Iran shut off one gas export route. That left the country with China as its sole major gas customer via a new pipeline, with Russia having stopped purchases of Turkmen gas in 2016.

A more optimistic assessment of Turkmenistan was lately issued by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Following an IMF visit to the country at the beginning of March, it said that Turkmen growth was “supported by rising natural gas exports, import substitution, and expansionary credit policies”.

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BBNaija 2018: Organizers speak on Nina’s wrong percentage votes during eviction show

Mercy Lank

Organizers of the Big Brother Naija 2018 reality show have apologized for airing a wrong percentage vote for housemate, Nina during the live eviction show. This is coming after viewers of the show blasted the organizers for altering the eviction votes.

Recall that Nina was reported to have emerged highest with 44.00% votes; however, a check on the votes showed that 1. 44 % was missing. Reacting, the organizers on their official Twitter handle wrote, ”Dear viewers, ”An incorrect percentage was published for Nina during tonight’s Eviction show. ”While we deeply regret this error, we wish to state that the audited and verified percentage for Nina is 45.44% as opposed to 44%. ”We thank you for your usual support & understanding.”

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China Blast US imposition of tariffs on imports of Aluminium and 127 others

Mercy Lank

China has responded to US imposition of tariffs on imports of Aluminium and steel by slamming tariffs by up to 25 percent on 128 U.S. products including frozen pork, wine and certain fruits and nuts. The tariffs, to take effect on Monday, were announced late on Sunday by China’s finance ministry and matched a list of potential tariffs on up to $3 billion in U.S. goods published by China on March 23. Soon after the announcement, an editorial in the widely read Chinese tabloid Global Times warned that if the U.S. had thought China would not retaliate or would only take symbolic counter-measures, it can now “say goodbye to that delusion.” “Even though China and the U.S. have not publicly said they are in a trade war, the sparks of such a war have already started to fly,” the editorial said. China’s Ministry of Commerce said it was suspending its obligations to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to reduce tariffs on 120 U.S. goods, including fruit and ethanol. The tariffs on those products will be raised by an extra 15 percent. Eight other products, including pork and scrap aluminum, will now be subject to additional tariffs of 25 percent, it said, with the measures effective from April 2. “China’s suspension of its tariff concessions is a legitimate action adopted under WTO rules to safeguard China’s interests,” the Chinese finance ministry said. The retaliatory tariffs came amid escalating trade tensions between Beijing and Washington, which have rocked global financial markets in the past week as investors feared a full-blown trade spat between two countries will be damaging for world growth. U.S. President Donald Trump is separately preparing to impose tariffs of more than $50 billion on Chinese goods intended to punish Beijing over U.S. accusations that China systematically misappropriated American intellectual property – allegations Beijing denies. China has repeatedly promised to open its economy further, but many foreign companies continue to complain of unfair treatment. China warned the United States on Thursday not to open a Pandora’s Box and spark a flurry of protectionist practices across the globe. “There are some people in the West who think that China looks tough for the sake of a domestic audience, and would easily make concessions in the end,” the Global Times editorial said. “But they are wrong.” The Global Times is run by the ruling Communist Party’s official People’s Daily, although its stance does not necessarily reflect Chinese government policy.

In a statement published on Monday morning, the Chinese commerce ministry said the United States had “seriously violated” the principles of non-discrimination enshrined in World Trade Organization rules, and had also damaged China’s interests. “China’s suspension of some of its obligations to the United States is its legitimate right as a member of the World Trade Organization,” it said, adding that differences between the world’s two largest economies should be resolved through dialogue and negotiation. author-avatar

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Deeper Life Church:The lack of true Christianity is a' bi 'Product of Corruption in Nigeria

Mercy Lank

The Deeper Christian Life Ministry has blamed lack of true Christianity for the level of corruption in the country. This was stated at the end of a four-day programme to mark the end of its Easter retreat, tagged, ‘Heirs of the Kingdom’, which had its Founder and General overseer, Pastor William Kumuyi, in charge. The camp commandant, Pastor Andrew Umoru speaking on behalf of Pastor Kumuyi urged Christians to stop embezzling money in public offices in order to reduce the level of corruption in the country. He said, “The message was clear on how to be heirs of the kingdom. It goes beyond believing in Christ or attending a local church. It is about having faith in Christ and genuine repentance; it’s about having a new life; a life that transforms society. “We have heard a lot about corruption in Nigeria. But we know that true Christianity brings the difference. And that was what the retreat was all about it. It was about teaching believers to shine as light and be different from the unbelievers. “They should not embezzle money in their offices and they should live according to the testimony and have good consciences when they are in authority, and deliver a different path to society.” The Lagos moderator, Pastor Bayo Oyeyemi also added that the problem of insecurity in Nigeria could also be addressed if people returned to God.

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Amnesty for Boko Haram: ‘Buhari’s government has finished Nigeria’ – Ann Kio-Briggs

Mercy Lank

Environmental Rights Activist and Convener of Niger-Delta Self-Determination Movement, NDSDM, Ann Kio-Briggs, has warned the President Muhammadu Buhari’s government against granting amnesty to Boko Haram members with resources from the Niger Delta. Opposing the plan, Kio-Briggs said amnesty for Boko Haram would amount to the government admitting that Nigerian government had failed and was incapable of saving Nigerians from terrorists and foreign invaders. She noted that the government had repeatedly described Boko Haram insurgents and killer herdsmen as foreigners. She wondered why the government would turn around to grant foreigners amnesty. Her words, ”Boko Haram has owned up to being a terrorist group. It has declared its support and affiliation to the ISIS, a renowned world terrorist organisation. “If the government wants to grant amnesty to a terrorist group, I think this country is finished. It means kidnappers, armed robbers and other criminals can be granted amnesty.

”This government wants Nigerians to believe that Boko Haram will embrace amnesty. I hope they don’t want to use Niger Delta oil money for the amnesty programme. “Government has told us repeatedly that Boko Haram are foreigners. By wanting to grant amnesty to Boko Haram, the government has admitted that Nigeria has failed and it has no capacity to protect Nigerians. We have killer herdsmen all over the place. “Foreigners have invaded Nigeria and the best the government can do is to grant them amnesty? That is why we in the Niger Delta want referendum. “Restructuring would have been good but since the core North does not want restructuring, we want referendum.”

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Refining Northern geopolitics: Perspectives on Buhari’s rejection

Mercy Lank

The recent refusal by Northern groups to endorse President Muhammadu Buhari for a second term is a restatement of fact. The groups did not say anything new, because in 2011 the same elders sidestepped the President in the search for a consensus candidate for that year’s Presidential election. Right from the days when he was the military head of state, the general impression among enlightened citizens in the north is that he is a loner. Even at his sacking via a palace coup in 1985, the then military head of state was ‘impeached’ by his colleagues for insular leadership and inability to canvass ideas with a view to building consensus. To a large extent, the position of the northern groups seems to buttress the observations from former President Olusegun Obasanjo, that Buhari has failed. Most retired former military officers also hold the view that President Buhari lacks leadership skills, arguing that of all past military rulers, the President ranks very low on the score of team building and empathic leadership. Grouse of Northern Groups IN the communiqué released after their meeting in Kaduna, the Northern Elders Forum (NEF), Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Borno Elders Forum and Supreme Council of Sharia in Nigeria used critical criteria to score the President below a pass mark. The fact that the position was not made by dodgy characters under anonymous circumstances puts a seal of authenticity on their decisions. Read by a member of the Northern Elders Forum, Hakeem Baba Ahmed, the following salient points were isolated to pass the no confidence vote. It is noteworthy that Professor Ango Abdullahi, the chairman of the occasion; Dr. Yima Sen and Ambassador Ibrahim Mai Sule, among other signatories, could not be dismissed as uninformed persons. The challenges, which they itemized, including, insecurity, abject poverty, social disharmony among communities, are sound basis of measuring the competence of an administration. After three years in office, they concluded that it was obvious that the President has not deployed expertise or deep knowledge of the problems, not to talk of organising intelligent ideas and initiatives to address them. Although President Buhari came into office mouthing anti-corruption, the decision of the northern elders shows clearly that that is the only trouble that ail the country. Hence, the elders accused him of betraying the hopes of the people, through indifference. It could also be deduced from the grouse of the Northern elders that the President is comfortable with the cult following he enjoys with the uneducated, illiterate poor masses, who identify with him during elections, but does nothing to in turn to redress their material and psychological circumstances. The northern elders must have spoken out of frustration, because instead of the President coming out to postulate on his plans to better the society, aides are encouraged to marshal ideas that are inconceivable by the President. It could be this governance by proxy that the NEF found detestable. The groups observed that despite public outcry against attacks, the President has not been able to proffer workable solutions.

The elders had real cause to worry that “too many communities are at the mercy of attacks from sundry groups of criminals who appear to have unchallenged access to space and weapons.” But while other parts of the country complain about the skewed nature of appointments by President Buhari, it was surprising that the Northern groups observed that the fact that the region has produced national leaders has not impacted positively on the socio-economic lot of the

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