Workers Day: Nigerians narrate how coronavirus don affect dia job

Lagos Island

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Pipo dey waka for Balogun Market for Lagos Island. (File pictue)

Wen di coronavirus palava begin worry kontries, goments give order for dia kontri pipo to siddon house.

Millions of pipo spend weeks under lockdown, including workers.

Depends on which category you fall under, goment and your company go tell you to work form home or siddon house first – except you be essential worker.

International Labour Organisation, wey bi world join body for workers all ova di world don reason am for dia new report say almost 3.3 billion workers for di world fit lose dia jobs sake of di Covid-19 pandemic.

30 year old Ngozi (no be her real name) na one of those pipo wey lose her job.

“Wen di production assistant tell me say dem no need my service again, e be like dream” na wetin Ngozi tok.

“I begin cry because I no know wia to start from” na wetin she add put

Ngozi bin find work for several months before she get job for one yoghurt production company for Lagos.

She say even though dem bin dey pay her 20 thousand naira a month wey be like $51.69 she no mind sake of say she fit feed her pikin and send moni to her old parents for Anambra state.

Ngozi hope to begin search for work afta di lockdown but dat wan sef na tall dream as many organisation dey struggle sake of di coronavirus pandemic.

Coronavirus case chart

BBC

‘Dem cut my salary’

Susan ‘no be her real name’ wey dey work for travel agency say, she dey lucky to still get work even though dem cut her salary.

“I receive 60% of salary. Some of my colleagues na 40% dem receive, depends on di level you dey”. Na wetin she tok.

She tell BBC Pidgin say dis pay cut really affect her plans and budget for di month.

She add say I no dey sure of how next month go be.

BBC Pidgin Covid 19 graphics

BBC

‘I no sure say I still get job’

Evelyn (no be her real name) wey dey work as front desk officer for one Nigerian company say due to dis coronavirus palava, she no sabi weda she still get job.

She tok say since she don house sake of di lockdown, her office don sack over 50 of her colleagues.

“As I dey so, na evriday I dey check my email to see dat email wey go contain list of workers wey dem don sack, make I know weda my office don sack me”, she tok.

How employers dey cope?

No be only workers dis pandemic dey pinch for bodi.

Priestly Ejiga, di founder of Goatmeat HQ, one Nigerian company wey dey sell animal protein, lose plenty moni for di month of April.

Goatmeat HQ like oda food businesses fall under essential services wey goment allow to continue operation during di lockdown.

Oga Ejiga bin dey jolly about all di moni wey im company go make dis period as pipo just dey buy meat yanfu yanfu. But gbege start wen one of im staff begin show symptoms of flu wey also resemble dat of coronavirus.

“Afta my staff alert me of her symptoms, me and all my workers enta 14 days of self-isolation and I come decide to take di tough decision to shut down operations”, Ejiga tell BBC Pidgin.

Im say im staff wey bin dey sick later begin dey feel beta afta some days wey prove say she bin no get di virus.

Ejiga say im gats pay im workers half salary for April sake of say dem no do any work.

As e be so, im and im workers dey hope to resume business on Monday May 4th, 2020, afta Nigerian goment relax lockdown rules for Lagos, Ogun and Abuja.

Di coronavirus don affect businesses and economies. Some sabi pipo say e go take months afta di virus palava end for anybody to fit gauge how bad e shake di world.