The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has suspended its nationwide strike , following the intervention of the National Security Adviser in the drift between the union and Dangote Refinery accused of sacking several Nigerians over the issue of unionization
PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo, announced the suspension at a press conference in Abuja, after the meeting with the National Security Adviser and the management of Dangote Refinery.
Osifo admitted that “grey areas” remain in the communiqué, which both the government and refinery management could not fully clarify.
He stressed that the association suspended the strike in good faith, despite lingering dissatisfaction with parts of the resolution.
Osifo warned that PENGASSAN would resume the industrial action without notice if Dangote Refinery fails to honour the agreement.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Dingyadi, confirmed that the industrial dispute had been resolved.
In a communiqué, Dingyadi said unionisation was a legal right of workers that must be respected.
He assured that no worker would be victimised for participating in the dispute.
The minister also announced that the Dangote Group would reassign over 800 disengaged workers to its subsidiaries without loss of pay.
“Both parties agreed to this understanding in good faith,” Dingyadi stated.
On Monday, aggrieved PENGASSAN members had barricaded the headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited in Abuja.
They also blocked entrances to the Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and the Upstream Petroleum Commission.
The protesters accused Dangote Refinery of illegally sacking more than 800 Nigerian workers and replacing them with foreign staff.
Members carried placards, chanted solidarity songs, and accused the refinery of violating labour rights.
In a circular, PENGASSAN alleged that the refinery had breached labour laws and International Labour Organisation conventions.
It claimed sacked workers were replaced with “over 2,000 Indians,” calling the move an affront to Nigerian workers.
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