Paradoxically, the problem now is that the employers' association is almost in disarray with just about three active members. The practical implication is that the collective agreement which was due for re-negotiation in 2007 has been put on hold. This consequently led to a situation in which branches of the union have been left to negotiate financial issues at the domestic level which does not really augur well for workers as they are gravely disadvantaged for since many workers and their representatives are not usually bold enough to confront their management personnel directly for fear of reprisals.. The ease with which bank employers carry out the on­going down-sizing exercise is a good case in point. Most of the affected banks failed to negotiate redundancy(which is what they have declared) as well as related benefits with the unions(see Box 2 for the few exceptions. Four other banks were yet to enter into negotiations with the union as at the time of writing. Box 2: Negotiation of Terminal Benefits for Members: Most of the employers in our industry always prefer to unlawfully retrench employees without following the requirements of Section 20 of the Labour Act and provisions of the subsisting industry wide Collective Agreement but with the intervention of the Union, good exit package were negotiated in Afribank, Wema Bank, Ecobank, First Bank Nigeria Plc, Niger Insurance and LASACO Insurance. Source: Interview with Assistant Secretary-General(Industrial Relations), ASSBIFI The precarious situation of the Nigerian economy in general and the banking sector in particular has made workers and the unions vulnerable to unfair labour practices from employers. The fear of the unknown(being thrown into a saturated labour market) has made workers more tolerant of the excesses of management. Other untoward practices which impinge on workers in the banking sector include what some describe as unrealistic work target, particularly for those in marketing, who are largely women. There is also the issue of working far in excess of 8hrs per day without compensation, either in cash or kind. According to top ranking official of the bank workers union, other unfair labour practices engaged in by the banks, especially new generation banks include arbitrary fixing of wages without collective bargaining, non-payment of redundancy and severance benefits, casualisation, contract employment, and outsourcing. The fact that these go on in spite of union presence is an indication that the balance of power within the world of work is in favour of employers. 51