Managing Director and Chief Executive of NSITF, Barrister Oluwaseun Falaye
Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF) is taking its campaign for stronger workplace protection to the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) Annual General Conference in Port Harcourt, with payroll under-declaration and employer compliance set to dominate discussions.
The session, scheduled for August 21 to 28, 2026, in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, will be led by NSITF Managing Director and Chief Executive, Mr Oluwaseun Faleye, under the theme, “Expanding The Legal Frontiers Of Workplace Protection And Social Security Beyond Limits In Nigeria.”
At the heart of the discussion is an issue that could determine how much protection a worker actually receives when things go wrong: whether employers accurately declare their workers and earnings.
Faleye is expected to address compliance and payroll transparency, while making a case for stronger collaboration between NSITF, the judiciary and the legal profession to ensure employers meet their obligations and workers are not left without adequate protection when they suffer workplace injuries, occupational diseases or lose their lives in the course of employment.
The engagement builds on last year’s NBA conference, where attention was largely focused on creating awareness about the Employees’ Compensation Act (ECA) 2010. This year, NSITF wants the conversation to move closer to implementation, enforcement and what the law means for workers in practical terms.
Under the ECA, administered by NSITF through the Employees’ Compensation Scheme (ECS), workers who suffer employment-related injuries or occupational diseases, as well as families of workers who die in the course of employment, are entitled to compensation, medical care and rehabilitation.
However, gaps in compliance remain a challenge. Where an employer under-declares payroll figures or leaves workers off its records entirely, the consequences can extend beyond paperwork, potentially affecting the benefits available to an employee when compensation becomes necessary.
The Port Harcourt session will examine the legal implications of such practices, alongside broader questions of employer transparency and statutory compliance. It will also consider how lawyers and the judiciary can help close the gap between what the law provides and what workers actually receive.
NSITF has identified legal practitioners as important players in this effort because of their role in promoting statutory obligations, advocating for employees and supporting enforcement of the ECA.
Beyond the conference, the Fund’s broader push is to expand workplace protection to more Nigerians across sectors and income levels, making compliance more than a regulatory requirement and turning it into a practical safeguard for workers.
NBA Annual General Conference is expected to bring together thousands of lawyers, judges and policymakers in Port Harcourt for discussions on law, governance and social justice.
For NSITF, putting workers’ compensation on that platform is an opportunity to bring employers’ obligations, workers’ rights and the enforcement of the law into the same room, with the outcome potentially influencing how workplace protection is delivered beyond the conference.
