Overview of job opportunities in Nigeria: a tale worth reading

Finding a job in Nigeria can be likened to a camel passing through the eye of a needle. Jobs can be either professional or non-professional. This classification is not strict, as a professional can have a job that is for a non-professional and vice versa.

THE ARTISANS

This category of workers is paid by the day, although there could be an individual to take the contract. A typical example was when my family house was being built and a contractor was engaged after quotations were received from a few artisans. He was paid the quoted amount for the fence, as an example, about N120,000 ($130) for the completion of the fence. The contractor brought other artisans to work, and he paid them N2000 ($2.2) per day. Breaking this down, the contractor needed to do his mathematics very well so he could have some reasonable gains. If he were paying N2000 for each artisan or laborer, he could decide to engage many artisans for each day, thereby ultimately reducing the number of days needed to complete the project. However, he could choose to engage a few laborers and have them work for longer days.

It is safer to have the right number of artisans for each day and ensure they are supervised so as not to engage in job redundancy. There could be artisans who are less efficient or not committed to the work. In such instances, it is not uncommon to have employees leave work early or give some flimsy excuses. Examples of artisans employed for daily pay include bricklayers, painters, plumbers, carpenters, etc.; they are classified as non-professionals. Their jobs do not come easily, and oftentimes, they are in line for available jobs.

THE PROFESSIONALS

Being a professional in Nigeria is not a guarantee for a good job—in fact, for any job at all. A former president of Nigeria recently said, and I quote, "There is no job vacancy in government for youths," which by implication could connote that positions in government are saturated by existing workers who are most likely the elderly or that there are more graduates than available job positions. It is usually a dilemma for a graduate to enter the labor market in search of jobs. It can be likened to picking and counting sand at the river bank. I have encountered many applicants who go around different organizations to drop their curriculum vitae (CV) with the hope that they will be called for an interview or considered for any available job position. At this junction, I must state that job applicants do not mind any job position, even if it is not in tandem with their course of study at the University. I have two goddaughters working in the banking sector; one studied Anatomy and the other studied Agriculture. Securing a job in Nigeria is more paramount than aligning such a job with a career or passion. Many applications have been dumped in the trash, and there have been a lot of failed promises.

This brings me back to having connections before securing a job. There were some job interviews I went for, and I saw complementary cards attached to different job applications. Here, your consideration is based on how highly placed or regarded your backup is. This does not mean that jobs cannot be secured without connections, but the chances are very slim. One requirement employers of labor ask for is Job experience from prospective employees. This is usually unavailable as the graduates either do not have the years of experience or have not worked in relevant industries to facilitate the job in view. @josediccus recently discussed in his post how applicants unnecessarily attribute skills and experience they do not have in order to secure job positions. It might be a form of branding or packaging, but in its actual sense, it is a form of deceit by the applicant so as to secure the desired job position. Would I call this a CV padding? CVs can either be specific or general. We have many applicants who are unable to defend what is portrayed as a skill in their CVs.

Some jobs are in higher demand than others, and an example is the medical profession. Here, you are handling matters that relate to life, and unless you are grounded or have undergone the necessary training, your chances of being considered are slim. Such jobs may have demand equal to supply, or, as the case may be, demand being greater than supply (which is rare but not impossible). For medics, the demand is on the high side, and it is much easier to get a job due to the large number of medics leaving Nigeria. This is one of the few situations where there is job availability in Nigeria.

Job racketeering is described as operating or acquiring a business or job through illegal means, which often involves the payment of money to facilitate the job. The job contract can come in various forms, such as upfront payment of certain amounts that may run into millions of Naira, or the facilitator can be paid from the first three or six salaries of the individual getting the job. I once fell victim to the above, and a payment of N750,000 ($1,000) was made last year, but till date, there has been neither sign of the job nor of the refund. The payment was a half-payment, and we were expected to balance the other half after the job was acquired. Some people have gotten jobs through this means, and many others, like me, have had an unfavorable outcome. This route of securing a job is a very unreliable one and can be legally implicating. The government has the Federal Character Commission (FCC) to oversee the impartial distribution of job openings to all parts of the country. Recent news has it that the chairman of the commission and other staff were alleged to be involved in job racketeering.

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SKILLED JOBS

Nigeria has gotten to a point where an acquired degree or certification is only an addition and not necessarily a tool for qualification. This is where skills are valued. For example, I would likely employ an individual who can speak 10 languages or more compared to someone who is limited to three languages, since my firm is likely involved with international organizations. Nigerians have woken up to acquiring skills such as fashion designing (tailoring), barbing, making bags and shoes, etc. These skills can be an added advantage in securing jobs or setting up a business venture. Where the capital is available, individuals with relevant skills do not mind setting up their businesses as self-employed workers rather than waiting for government jobs. The major disadvantage is that such jobs are not pensionable, and the income is not fixed.

Securing a job can either be in the private or government sectors. The government sector can be at the local, state, or federal level. Any of the aforementioned jobs is competitive, and entry-level positions are usually at the base of the pyramid. The minimum wage in Nigeria is N30,000 ($33) per month and cannot sustain the average Nigerian, who has to pay bills such as tax, utility, food, transportation, etc. Teachers and Nurses in the private and state sectors are paid less than N50,000 ($55) per month, and this goes for many jobs at entry level. Lecturers at the university are not exempt, as their salaries at entry level are between N100,000 and N150,000 ($110 and $163) per month. Entry-level salaries for State and Federal Government Doctors range between N220,000 and N350,000 ($240 and $380) per month.

Jobs in the private sector are a different ballgame. The employer would want to use you till the last sweat, and oftentimes, the rules can be suffocating. There are employers that deduct your pay or give punishments when you come late to work or have misbehavior. Private companies do not pay as much as government organizations, yet their work schedules are usually more cumbersome. Employers are fond of cheating employees out of their pay and leave days. Permissions from work are hardly approved by employers unless luck is on the employee's side. Most employees in the private sector do not have the job satisfaction they desire. The private sector is out for profits and would do anything to ensure that is achieved, irrespective of employee dissatisfaction.

I have desired to own my own business, but one thing I would ensure is a cordial relationship between myself and the employees. Having relatives work in my business is something I would not want to do. It is easier to hold strangers responsible for actions in a business venture compared to relatives. This does not mean I would not have policies written at work, because where there is no law, there is no crime. There are jobs in Nigeria that pay below the minimum wage, but I doubt if I would want to subject any employee to any payments below that, and even if I did, there would be allowances to compensate them for their pay. I am not sure I want to have a hospital of my own; I would prefer to have a big pharmacy store and maybe a diagnostic center.

As an individual, my work is less burdensome compared to that of my colleagues in the same profession. In March 2021, I worked from Monday morning to Sunday Morning for three consecutive weeks in the Obstetrics and Gynecology unit. Three months after I resumed work in the unit, I lost 4kg and almost always wore a gloomy face. After such agonizing times in the toxic environment, I concluded I was not going to endanger my life in the name of residency training here in Nigeria. Good enough for me; I got a job with a health insurance organization, and my work schedule ends by 5 p.m. with a free weekend. This is much more appealing to me, as I do not have to experience the physical and mental torture of jobs in Nigeria, worsened by the inadequate pay.

This is an entry I have made in response to @tergan 's request to have an overview of jobs in Nigeria.

Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions.