The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Lagos State Chapter, has called on Dangote Industries Limited to allow its employees to join workers’ unions to protect their rights and strengthen workplace relations.
During a tour of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Dangote Fertiliser Plant on Tuesday, the Chairperson of the NLC Lagos State Chapter, Mrs. Funmi Sesi, said that unionisation would help to organise workers, address their concerns, and assist employers in improving operations.
“On behalf of NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, we want to say: Dangote, please give us a chance to unionise your workers,” she said.
Mrs. Sesi also urged the company to employ more indigenous people from its host communities, citing labour laws that stipulate that 70 per cent of an organisation’s workforce should be from the host community, while 30 per cent can be expatriates.
In his response, the Vice-President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, assured the NLC that the company is committed to training and employing members of its host communities. He stated that the company has a well-established training centre in Obajana, Kogi State, and plans to set up another in Lagos.
According to Mr. Edwin, 22 per cent of the company’s workforce is from its host communities, 50 per cent from the state, and the remainder from other parts of the country. He reiterated the company’s commitment to human capital development, staff welfare, and the overall wellbeing of the economy.
