Harassment

Nigeria has no comprehensive private sector workplace harassment statute, so the protection is assembled from several sources.

The Constitution guarantees dignity of the human person and freedom from discrimination. The Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act 2015 creates offences covering various forms of violence and coercion, and applies in the Federal Capital Territory with many states having adopted their own versions. The Criminal Code and Penal Code create offences covering assault and indecent conduct. And the National Industrial Court applies international labour standards and ratified conventions, which is where the most useful employment law development has happened.

The National Industrial Court has heard sexual harassment claims and awarded damages, treating harassment as a breach of the employment relationship and of the employee's dignity.

For employers, the practical obligation is to have a policy, a reporting route that does not run only through the alleged harasser's line manager, a proper investigation process, and protection for complainants against retaliation. All of that belongs in the employee handbook.

Underreporting is the defining feature. Complaints are rare relative to prevalence, and the reasons are practical: fear of losing the job, the absence of a reporting route that does not involve the person complained about, the assumption that nothing will happen, and the social cost of complaining.

That produces a false impression of safety for employers. The absence of complaints is not evidence of the absence of conduct, and the National Industrial Court's willingness to award damages has changed the exposure.

For an employee, the practical steps matter. Keep a contemporaneous record with dates, times, what was said or done and who else was present. Preserve messages. Complain in writing through whatever route the handbook provides, and keep a copy. Where the internal route is unusable or has failed, the National Industrial Court has jurisdiction over the employment claim, and criminal conduct can also be reported to the police.

Where the situation becomes intolerable and the employer does nothing, resignation followed by a claim is possible, and the record built while still employed is what makes it viable.

For employers, an investigation that is prompt, documented and independent of the accused is the single most important thing, and it is also the best protection against a claim.

Three complaints that arrive at HR looking similar and are not the same.

Harassment is unwanted conduct affecting a person's dignity or creating a hostile environment. It need not relate to any characteristic, so persistent bullying qualifies.

Discrimination is less favourable treatment because of a protected characteristic such as sex, religion, ethnicity or disability. The focus is the reason for the treatment rather than its manner.

A demanding or unpleasant manager is neither, provided the conduct is directed at work rather than at the person, is applied consistently, and stays within what a reasonable workplace involves. Setting hard targets is management. Humiliating somebody in front of colleagues every week is not.

The distinction matters because the evidence differs. A harassment complaint is built from incidents. A discrimination complaint is built from comparison.

The absence of a single comprehensive statute is the central weakness. Protection depends on assembling constitutional, criminal and employment law arguments, and outcomes are less predictable than under a dedicated regime.

Enforcement depends on the employee acting, and most do not, particularly where the alleged harasser is senior.

Evidence is difficult. Harassment usually happens without witnesses, which is why contemporaneous records and preserved messages carry so much weight.

And the informal sector is largely outside all of it. Domestic workers, market traders and staff of very small businesses have the same rights and almost no practical route to enforce them.