CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND ON THE SUBJECT MATTER-NITEL
The Nigeria Telecommunication
Limited (NITEL) come into existence in January 1985 as a result of the
merger between the former Nigeria External Telecommunication limited
(NET) and the Telecommunication, sector of the former Post
Telecommunication Department (P&T), by the Federal Government. The
reason for the merger as advised by the government were the
compatibility of service equipment and the streamlining of activates in
both NET & P & T it was envisaged that NITEL will definitely
create harmonization and complimentarily of services which up till the
merger, were handled by NET (Enternal and P & T (international).
Unlike most government
parastatals, NITEL was created to render its service at a profit. The
company is not only self-financing but serves as a source of revenue per
government. It would be recalled that with NET & P & T, the
parent bodies, were solely owned by the federal government hence NITEL
could be described as the “Bain child” of government. The main
objective of the company is other provision of telecommunication
services both internally and internally through in a combination of
communication satellites, submarine cable of microwave links and the
high frequency radio network. The telecommunication services provided
by NITEL include the following (both internal and external)
1) Telephone Service
2) Telex service
3) Telegram service
4) Press recreation
5) Presses international direct delivery service (100)
6) Voice cast
7) Zeased Grant
8) Photo telegrams
9) Ship shore service
10) Television courage the satellite.
11) High frequency radio service.
The above service are being rendered to
the public by NITEL at us head offices in Lagos and at its branches all
across the nation on a 24 hours daily basic.
The important of the above service
cannot be overstated in the development of our country’s economy. It
is a know fact that communication is and essential and vital means of
efficiency one not only desirable but inevitable if the nation must
achieve of economic objective and maintains its proper place in the
comity of nations.
NITEL in its strive of producing
improved and efficient telecommunication service in segmented into five
zones of operations, with the national headquarters in Lagos. The
zones are:
1) Lagos
2) South West
3) South East
4) North West
5) North East
The zones are further divided into 23
territories, all across the 21 states of the federations including the
Federal Capital Territory Abuja.
The company is structured into a
division for proper and effective administration. Each division is
headed by a direction or general manager, as the case may be. There
are two deputy managing director who co-ordinate the division together
for achieving the company’s objectives, the company as a whole is being
headed by a managing director. At the top of the organization
hierarchy, the company has a beard of director comprising the chairman,
the managing director, the two deputy managing directors and heads of
division and zones, as well as the company secretary I Lager Adviser.
The organization is really a complex one and was a designed to case the
achievement of the company objectives.
In the area of administration the
company had formulated many new polities. One of such polities
includes the recently revised fringes benefit schemes.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Problem of administration of employee
welfare Administration of employee welfare programme are fraught with
complex problem’s some of these problems device from the installation of
the welfare programmes, other purely from inherent bureaucratic
procedures.
A few of these problems are:
1) Accounting problem.
2) Telex service
3) Telegram service
4) Press recreation
5) Press international direct service (100)
6) Voice cast
7) Leased telegrams
8) Photo telegrams
9) Ship shore service
10) Television coverage via satellite
11) High frequency video service
The above service are being rendered to
the public by NITEL at its head office in Lagos and its branches all
across the nation on a 24 hours daily basic.
The importance of the above service
cannot be overstated in the development of our company’s economy. It
is a known fact communication in an essential and vital means of
development in terms of peace and war. Its effectiveness and
efficiency are not only disabling, but inevitable of the nation must
achieve its economic objective and materials its proper place in the
country of nations.
NITEL in its strike of providing
improved and efficient telecommunication services is segmented into five
lines of operations with the national headquarters in Lagos. The lines
are:
6) Lagos
7) South West
8) South East
9) North West
10) North East
1.3 OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
1. Accounting problem:
The curse of accounting
problem facing managers is the fact that very few companies maintain a
break-down of the costs of these fringe benefits to reflect.
a) Cost per employee per year
b) Percentage of payroll made up of fringe benefit costs.
c) Cost per employee per hour-actual productive hour worked.
In companies where any regular fringe
account at all is attempt, it is likely to be a terms of total (naira)
cost of fringe benefits and total schedule hours to work.
2. Eligibility Problem:
The issue of those who are
eligible for fringe benefits; has a profound effect on the cost of the
programmes. The more liberal the eligibility rules the higher the
cost. For example, some companies do not allow their new employees to
enjoy certain benefits until their precautionary period is over.
Sometimes, some companies do restrict the eligibility of employees for a
particular benefit plant a specified categories or levels of employees.
3. Employee financing:
Should employee make any
contribution to the expense of the firm’s benefits programmes? Most
union and employees are strongly opposed to “contributory” programmes.
Since many employees feel that they have earned the benefits that they
are being grated, they cannot understand why they should pay part of the
cost any more from their own wages.
4. Financial Problem:
Many companies introduce some
benefits plan when it is financially sound and tend to run into trouble
when they can no longer support the plan financially.
Management must therefore
realize that when it introduces a benefit plan it premises some part of
the firm’s economic resources. Even where there are no legal
obligation to do so, employee often feel that management has made a
moral commitment to continue the programme, the management should face
the problem of having to make through, realistic evaluation of its cost,
both short-term and long-term. But the management finds itself
incapable of continuing a programme; it would bring the company’s plight
before the union so that renegotiations would take place for trading of
the programme.
5. Other Problems:
There are so many other
problems such as difficulty in making accurate predictions of the cost
of benefit programmes, as they have the tendency to grow more expensive
over time; freezing the mobility of labour among rank and file workers;
change in the national economy etc.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
- Safety programmes and workman’s compensation most companies have
some type of safety programmer to educate workers, such as posters,
warning signs, safety talks, and other medial by which employees are
given instructions in safe work methods and are urged to follow them;
some companies also conduct safety education courses that are aimed at
reducing the occurrence of accidents at work place is compensated the
benefit are standardized so as to match any degree of accident. Hence
management seeks to avoid the necessity for court action. These they
do in compliance to workman’s compensation Act of 1958.
- Health Insurance: Accidents and industrial disease growing out
of the job are compassable various forms of health and accident
insurance are provided, some completely financed by the employer while
other are shared with the employee. The following type of insurance
are provided by various firms.
a) Hospitalization
b) Surgical expense
c) Vision care
d) Dental care etc.
- Medical Services: There is increasing interest among many large
companies in provided medical services for their employee, other
companies undertake the service of one or more clinics to render the
medical service for their employees and their dependents.
1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
1. Old age and Retirement:
A major source of worker
concern about economic security is the possibility of dependency in old
age. Involuntary retirement, disability or death may create serious
economic problems for employee or their dependents. Current policy has
developed public; union and individual firm programmes to meet these
problems. Public programmes now provide both old age pensions and
retirement programmes.
2. Company retirement programmes:
A formal company retirement
programme can help to facilitate the various adjustments that may be
required within that company and on the part of the employee when their
retire. Many companies offer their employee a huge sum of money, known
as gratuity, on retirement. This is a sort of compensation to the
employee for successful years spent with the organization in Nigeria.
The age of retirement range is from 55 years to 60 years or more
depending on the company’s policy.
3. Pension Plans
Many companies undertake
pension plans for their employee as a means of insuring them when on
retirement. Most of the plans are financed by employee contributions,
but some are Jointly financed by the employer and the employee.
Benefits are administered by insurance firms or by trustees of
non-insured plans. Employees under the plans are paid a specified
amount on monthly basis after retirement. This is common in the public
sector in Nigeria.
The basis provision of the
scheme involves payment of a specified amount to the employee after
retirement on monthly basis from the contribution. In some
organization, it is paid in bulk to the employee on retirement. Other
provision includes death in service benefits, gratuity, etc. it is
universal and covers all staff in respective of their status.
Nature and Scope
Although the term ‘employee
welfare’ in itself implied a voluntary provision on the part of the
employer. The administration of the state benefit scheme and certain
legal requirement concerning other benefit and service purpose statutory
obligation up on the employer.
In addition to such
obligation, however, a large number of companies provide employee
services for they used to be they bits and pieces of goodies that
occasionally feel from the high table of paternalistic employers, hence
they are know to be fringe (ie managerial) benefit of recent, the
package has grown hydra headed in from and monstrous in relation size,
and in apprehension that is beginning to be called the “hidden pay
roll”.
Manager and employers do not
play dominant role in administering all benefit and sources and may not
do little more than to comply with prescribed public regulations so,
public policy play a lending role in explaining several important types
of fringe provision. It has long emphasized the advancement of economic
security and qualitative benefit such as public pensions, paid
vacations, industrial, ill health and accident.
Employee-union on the other
hand has supported all of these public intentions and has in addition
sought paid sick league, health and welfare programme increased payment
to workers, etc the union have pursued those benefit with Nigeria for
the best interest of their members. Even through managers and
employers may sometime appears as opposed to all fringes they have
invested and advertised any of their own. Those is in recognition of
the fact that many benefit offers possibilities of implementing their
polices to improve employee morale, to encourage order absenteeism, and
to assist employee in identifying their personal goals and interest with
those of the organization. Hence, employees have come to regard
fringe benefits as production which are charge along with other firms of
remuneration.
1.6 REFERENCES
Gleck W. F. (1998) Personal: A Prognstic Approach
Texas, Business Publication Inc.
Nwachukwu C. C. (1981) Executive Fringe Benefit,
Ododuwa; Business Times No 2 Page 15.
Akinla, E. A (1977) Negative Role of Fringe Benefit,
Business Times No 15 Page 24.
Ejiofor, P. N. D (1977) Government Spending
Pattern and Inflation in Nigeria Threat Better Resource of Management Nigeria Journal of Business Management.