Many Nigerians prefers working for the government rather than working for various private companies that are willing to pay huge wages. There various reasons attached to this, and of those is the well-being of workers. Workers leave is very essential to every employee. In this article, we shall be looking at the various types of leave for government employees in Nigeria.
For many Nigerian workers, they see no need working as an elephant continually without having an appropriate time to rest. No one wants a situation where they have to work tirelessly without consideration for their wellbeing. Leaves are one of the many benefits of being a government employee.
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Leaves are actually what civil servants are entitled to, and it serves various reasons. Some leaves are given to workers to ensure enable them fulfill their obligations as a mother, father, ward etc, while some are meant to allow workers rejuvenate from a long period of hard work.
About the issue of leave, it is actually something that all employees are entitled to, and it is really for various good reasons. Some of them are made to ensure they fulfill their obligations a mother, a father, a parent, the child of someone, etc. Some are meant to allow workers to rejuvenate from a long period of work.
The following are what the Labour Law states in Nigeria concerning the entitlement of leaves for government employees.
- Every worker shall be entitled after twelve months’ continuous service to a holiday with full pay of-
- At least six working days; or
- In case of a person under the age of sixteen years (including an apprentice), at least 12 working days.
- The holiday mentioned in subsection (1) of this section may be deferred by agreement between the employer and the worker: Provided that the holiday-earning period shall not thereby be increased beyond 24 months’ continuous service.
- It shall be unlawful for any employer to pay wages in lieu of the holiday mention in subsection (1) of this section to a worker whose contract has not terminated.
- A person who ceases to be employed after having completed-
- Less than twelve but not less than six months in the continuous employment of an employer; or
- Not less than six months in the continuous employment of an employer since he last qualified for a holiday under subsection (1) of this section, shall be paid with respect to that period of employment an amount bearing the same proportion to full pay for one week at his normal rate as that period bears to twelve months.
So, going on leave is a right you have as a government worker or civil servant. Nevertheless, while many private firms do not give much regard to this, the civil service is compelled to adhere – which is one of the advantages civil servants have.
Although they can vary from one government parastatal to another and from states to states, here are the most popular types of leave for government employees in Nigeria.
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Types of Leave for Government Employees in Nigeria
The following are the types of leave in Nigerian Civil Service.
Sick Leave
When a civil servant is sick, he or she is entitled to a maximum of 12 working days of paid sick leave. You should also note that before this leave is granted, it must first of all be certified by a registered medical practitioner.
Sick leave, according to the labour law, is meant to be a fully paid leave. It should be calculated as the employee’s basic wage which is exclusive of overtime pay as well as other allowances. Additionally, the civil servant gets checked by a qualified medical practitioner, and when the worker is insured, there are certain medical benefits he or she is entitled to (including specialist consultations, ophthalmological services, and so on and so forth).
As far as sick leave is concerned, the job security remains strong, as the employment of the employee remains secure during the 12 days of paid sick leave. Anyone can fall sick at any point in time and this should not be the reason for someone to lose his or her job.
Maternity and Paternity Leave
According to the Labour Law, all-female civil servants are entitled to at least 12 weeks maternity leave with full pay. As for the paternity leave which deals with men, it is not currently recognized in Nigeria’s Labour Law. Nevertheless, in a state like Lagos, civil servants are entitled to 10 days paternity leave within the first two months of the birth of their child.
Leave of Absence
The leave of absence in Nigeria Civil Service can be explained in the following way. For instance, there are certain times when an employee might have some very good reason to be away from work for a few days without planning beforehand. At such times, they can demand leave of absence. It should be noted that before the head of that department can get it approved, the employee is expected to state vital information such as the reason why he or she intends going on the leave (which must be a very good reason) and how long they will be staying away from the office.
Annual Leave
This is the number of days civil servants are allowed to be away from office within a year without any issues. The employer has been compelled, by the Labour Law, to ensure that they pay for this period, as it is a right of the employee (which they can choose to activate at any time they desire). One of the interesting things about the annual leave is that it occasionally attracts some allowances. Nevertheless, the issue that usually comes up often time has to do with the duration and the entitled allowances.
Although it is a right, there are still some terms and conditions involved. For instance, it is not allowed to activate leave allowance and duration beyond 6 days on employers. That is what the labour law highlighted (and civil servants are expected to be aware of these things beforehand). As touching the amount of money that an employee is entitled to when they go on annual leave, there are different patterns being embraced and subscribed to by different co-operations.
Conclusion
Reading to this point, I am quite sure you must have gotten a better understanding about the various types of leave for government employees or civil servant in Nigeria especially that of the leave of absence in Nigeria Civil Service. To get more facts and information about Nigeria, you can easily subscribe to this site via the email subscription box on this page.
