The Federal Government has brokered peace between Dangote Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
This development has put an end to a labour dispute that threatened fuel supply stability.
After two days of talks on Monday and Tuesday, the parties reached an agreement that disengaged workers will be reabsorbed into other Dangote Group companies, with no loss of pay.
The conciliation meeting was convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi.
The high-level session was attended by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu; the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dingyadi; the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun; the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu; and the Minister of State for Labour and Employment.
In his remarks, Dingyadi reminded both parties that “the right of workers to unionise in accordance with Nigerian law must be respected.”
“Whereas the leadership of PENGASSAN said that the directives given to stop the supply of gas to Dangote Petroleum and withdrawal of services was in response to the termination of appointment of over 800 members of PENGASSAN by the management of the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Limited, the management of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical on the other hand, explained the reason for disengagement of the workers was as a result of the ongoing reorganisation in the company,” a communiqué after the meeting stated.
It indicated that after lengthy discussions, the parties to the dispute agreed on several resolutions, going forward, which are expected to be adhered to strictly.
“After a lengthy discussion, the matter was resolved as follows: The Honourable Minister of Labour informed the meeting that unionisation is a right of workers in accordance with the laws of Nigeria and that this right should be respected.
“After examining the procedure used in the disengagement of workers, the meeting agreed that the management of Dangote Group shall immediately start the process of taking the disengaged staff to other companies within the Dangote Group, with no loss of pay.
“No worker will be victimised arising from their role in the impasse between Dangote and PENGASSAN. PENGASSAN agreed to start the process of calling off the strike. Both parties agreed to this understanding in good faith,” the communique noted.
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