…no end in sight until members are called back to work, the member says
The strike action by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) was enforced on Monday, affecting activities in some oil and gas institutions, including the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
Staff of these institutions who confirmed the development to BusinessDay said they were denied access to their offices upon resumption.
Also confirming the enforcement to BusinessDay, Tony Iziogba, PENGASSAN Chairman at Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, that members are observing full compliance with the directive of the Association.
He said that until the sacked staff of Dangote Refinery are called back to their duties, the strike will continue.
“It’s going on with 100 per cent compliance, we are complying with the strike. The minister saying that there is a meeting does not mean that the strike should not be held. Everybody should go and talk to Dangote; Dangote should not be lawless.
Dangote should follow the rule of the labour law, the Trade Union Act and follow the ILO convention and should act accordingly.
“Members are at will to join a union, and they did that in Dangote refinery, and two days after Dangote sacked every one of them, singularly because they became a member of the union.
Read also: PENGASSAN members march to NNPC Towers to protest Dangote Refinery mass sack
“Until those members are called back to their work function, this strike will continue. There can be an end in sight if Dangote goes to a meeting and says the members are now part of the office. Then the strike is over.
“This strike affects NNPC, NUPRC, it affects every other oil and gas agency in the industry.”
The Association had insisted that Dangote Refinery’s unilateral action to sack over 800 members for joining PENGASSAN is an affront to all workers in Nigeria and a deliberate violation of Nigeria’s labour laws, the Constitution, and ILO conventions.
The Association noted that no intervention whatsoever will be entertained across field locations except where the safety of personnel and assets is at risk.
This is despite the call for calm and invitations to a dispute resolution meeting by Muhammad Dingyadi, Minister of Labour and Employment.
Dingyadi, who had urged the Association to reconsider its proposed strike action over its dispute with Dangote Refinery, also appealed to both parties to be mindful of the importance of the petroleum sector to the country, being the core of her economy.
He noted that a strike will not only lead to heavy revenue losses for the country but also cause more hardship and difficulties for Nigerians.
“Consequentially, it will have adverse impacts, both on economic stability and national security,” the minister said in a statement.
