LEGAL PROTECTION OF THE RIGHTS OF TEMPORARY WORKERS: AFRICA VERSUS THE UNITED STATE OF AMERICA

Abstract

This paper examines legal protection available to temporary workers as a method of employment where people are engaged without a permanent appointment contract which is currently highly prevalent in Nigeria, Ghana and the United States of America. Over the years, the Nigerian labour community has suffered from instabilities ranging from inconsistent government policies, recurrent economic recessions, inadequate power supply, and other structural challenges. In response, many employers have resorted to casual or temporary employment as a means reducing costs and avoiding statutory obligations. Temporary employment, in principle, should apply to short-time term, irregular, or seasonal work arrangements. However, in practice, employers often abuse this arrangement, retaining workers in temporary status for several years without granting them the rights and protections of permanent employees. While Nigeria’s Labour Act makes limited provisions, it falls short of ensuring adequate protection, leaving workers vulnerable to job insecurity, unfair wages, and exclusion from social benefits. This paper adopts the doctrinal research methodology.  This paper examines the extant laws for the protection the rights of temporary works in Nigeria, Ghana and the United States of America with the focus on strengthening measures to uphold the rights of temporary workers in Nigeria. From the analysis, the findings of this dissertation revealed that casual and temporary employment in Ghana and America has taken on a permanent form like the situation in Nigeria. In Ghana, many of these categories of workers have been in employment for more than a year continuously without their status being regularised as permanent employees as provided by the law. Comparative insights from Ghana, and United State of America demonstrate that with clear definitions, codified rights, and effective enforcement mechanisms, temporary employment can be regulated in a way that balances employment flexibility with employee dignity. It is recommended that Nigeria can draw from the example of Ghana where the new Labour Act of 2003 clearly defines the status of casual and temporary workers.