By Monsuru Olowoopejo
Staff of a Nigerian based telecommunication giant, MTN, may still have to continue with working from home arrangement adopted by the company after Coronavirus outbreak in Nigeria, with the firm‘s management believe that maintaining the current system for two or four weeks more would help it put in place proper plans into curfew that would be introduced in replace of lockdown.
In view of government adjustment on lockdown and introduction of curfew, the company thought that it would be wise to advise it, staffers, to still remain at home, work online while its management design a new conducive pattern of operation such that would not bring hardship on it member staff till after situation normalizes across the nation.
The management was said to have considered the mode of operation in its offices across the country and time frame approved for movement, 6am and 8pm, by President Muhammadu Buhari while announcing a relaxation of the lockdown imposed on Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, Lagos and Ogun States, and decided to sustained the earlier mode since the new directives could further peach the staff against the President’s directives.
To ensure staff do not breach any government directives, it was learned that the management, in order to ensure safety and coronavirus pandemic containment measure, considered the new development and issued a Memo to the effect.
In the memo said to have been issued by the firm, the staff were said to have been asked to embrace guidelines and advisory on coronavirus pandemic outlined by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Nigerian authorities.
A top management staff of the telecommunication giant told our correspondent that the management often considers the safety of its staff in every decision and that was reasons for the decision to allow staff performs their duties from home.
He added that the one month window was introduced to assist the MTN management understudy the entire process in each state and design an office work mode that conforms with the new directives.
“The company consider the welfare of its staff as paramount and that was why MTN shut it office before the President announced lockdown in the three major cities”.
