Nigerian activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore has called for an end to contract staffing in Nigeria, describing the practice—particularly widespread in the banking sector—as “state-backed slavery.”
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Sowore said his next major campaign would target what he called exploitative labour practices that deny workers basic rights and dignity. “Millions of Nigerians work full-time without job security, benefits, or dignity, while corporations and government agencies exploit ‘contract’ arrangements to escape responsibility,” he wrote.
Contract staffing refers to employing workers through third-party agencies or fixed-term contracts instead of hiring them directly. The arrangement, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), covered about 42 percent of the banking workforce in the fourth quarter of 2019. More recent data from the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) suggests that figure may have risen to 65 percent, with many contract workers earning less than half the pay of permanent staff and lacking pensions, health insurance, or housing benefits.
Although Nigeria’s Labour Act mandates equal pay for equal work, weak enforcement has allowed companies to exploit loopholes. Labour unions have long criticized the practice, with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) calling it a form of “modern indenture.”
Edo State lawmaker and former NLC president, Adams Oshiomhole, recently accused banks of keeping workers on perpetual contracts to cut costs. “They dress as though they are bankers, yet when they are thrown out, they have no gratuity, no security,” he said.
Sowore, who was recently released from police custody after leading a protest for the release of IPOB leader Nnamdi Kanu, urged contract staff, graduates, and labour unions to join a nationwide campaign involving protests, petitions, and litigation to end long-term contract employment without rights.