Stakeholders in the oil and gas industry, including Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPIMS) are meeting again today to resolve the crisis between Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Chevron Nigeria Limited, a major player in the upstream sector of the economy.
Parties to the crisis met in Lagos on Thursday in the efforts to avert the planned industrial action by NUPENG against Chevron, which could disrupt operations in the fragile oil and gas sector.
Afolabi Olawale, the General Secretary of NUPENG, told BusinessDay on Thursday that following the intervention of NNPC and NAPIMS, another meeting has been scheduled today by 11:am and the outcome would determine whether or not NUPENG would proceed with its actions against Chevron, just as he advised members to be on red alert.
NUPENG is accusing Chevron of violating agreement reached with the union of which NNPC, NAPIMS and the federal ministry of labour and employment were a party.
President of NUPENG, Williams Akporeha had knocked Chevron over alleged consistent refusal to honour the agreement signed by the parties.
“It is a public knowledge that the unions in the oil and gas industry had a protracted negotiation with Chevron Nigeria Limited over 70% labour manpower reduction which they (Chevron) claimed was required in view of reductions in their operations in the Nigeria oil and gas industry.”
According to NUPENG, after up to one year negotiation brokered by NNPC, NAPIMS and the ministry of labour, it was agreed: That considering the intervention of all the institutions mentioned above and the various justifications made, only 30% of labour manpower contract workers will be relieved
That from the 1,856 labour manpower contract staff (of which NUPENG had 1,120 (contract staff) members, PENGASSAN with 213 (contract staff) and non-unionised, 523 respectively), the 30% reduction agreed shall be spread in equal percentages among the three groups- NUPENG, PENGASSAN and non-unionised in Chevron operations.
That union executive (NUPENG and PENGASSAN) will not be affected by the reduction. That Chevron Nigeria Limited will not in any guise change the labour manpower to service contract.
It was also agreed that anyone that voluntarily offers to go, will be counted as part of the agreed 30%.
“Unfortunately, immediately after the agreement was reached, Chevron started executing the exercise in blatant violation of the agreed terms, as only NUPENG members had been exited from work leaving behind the non-unionised workers and PENGASSAN members.”
The union alleged that over 500 of NUPENG members including union executives were being exited.
Against this background, the union has put members and the general public on notice of possible legal and industrial action against Chevron just as it called on the management of the oil company to stick to the terms of the agreement.
“Consequent on the above demands and having been pushed to the wall, NUPENG hereby puts all members on red alert should Chevron Nigeria Limited and its contractors fail or comply with our demands within the next seven days. We would also not hesitate to take necessary legal options available to us; including industrial actions to press home our legitimate demands,” Akporeha said.
JOSHUA BASSEY
