Last week I wrote about a new wave of young people who are against stable 9-5 jobs in Lagos. They call it slavery, etc.
Some people messaged me in support to say: “you can’t just build a business overnight, young people should learn to work under others, learn the ropes before starting out.”
Yes, I support this but we should also talk about how some employers in this Lagos are actually horrible, disgusting people.
Now, I have been lucky to work under decent, respectable and kind bosses in fair-minded companies. This is not to say I have not been scolded when I made mistakes or I do not have days when I whine ceaselessly about work but the job is the job, you try your best to do what you were employed to do.
This is why I do not understand bosses who are always shouting about how they pay salaries. LOL. Are you not supposed to pay salaries? We have a contract: I do my work, and you pay me, so why are you shouting about paying salaries? I should congratulate you for paying salaries?
Our system is so rotten that people now compliment employers for paying employees their salaries, like they are doing their employees a favour. I mean if government is not paying why should private entities bother?
I have a friend who goes home crying at least once a week. The owner of the firm she works for, not only insults his staff verbally, he does so emotionally.
Oga employer, biko why are you bullying your staff? This particular CEO will deduct monies from salaries of his staff if they come to work 1 minute late but they never close at the stipulated 5pm. They always work at least 1-2 hours extra and nothing is paid for that.
They are even called to work on some Sundays and nothing is paid for that extra time. You want your employees to grow your business, to make your dreams for your company their dreams too but you won’t treat them well? You change cars every other year, go on vacations with your family, spend extravagantly but cannot even pay simple salaries yet they should come on Sunday because something urgent came up?
Should I talk about those who physically abuse their employees? Yes, there are employers in this Lagos who slap their employees routinely. There are also those disgusting animals who sexually abuse their female staff.
They take advantage of the fact that our economy is in a shambles and people cannot just resign and leave.
I have a friend who endured sexual assault at work, her boss casually slaps her butt, touch her back, hold her waist and face, and persistently asked to visit her at home.
She had to do mental gymnastics to find ways of avoiding his hands at work and reasons why he should not visit her at home. Know what her salary was? N25,000.
The day she broke down and told her mother was the last day she went back to that office. She is lucky to have a supportive family, there are many whose families depend on their salaries, so there is no resigning, “please manage and pray about it” is what they are told.
I heard of one who constantly derides his employees with “what kind of education did you people get in this Nigeria?” Of course he studied abroad so any mistake employees make is because they went to inferior Nigerian universities.
See, if we keep pointibg out instances of abuse at work in this Lagos, this post won’t end today.
So dear young person (also talking to myself) know your limit, know your values. Before you accept jobs please look through your job description carefully.
If you think you are being abused at work, talk to people, preferably older persons with experience.
However, I am not saying you shouldn’t do your job, then go on to whine to everyone who will listen. Do your job, learn from your superiors so that even if you have to leave, you would have grown in your area of expertise.
Also please develop a good savings culture so that if anything that you cannot stomach happens, you can carry your bag and go home with your head held high knowing you won’t starve for, at least, another month or two.