The Federal Government has intervened to resolve the dispute between the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery after the union accused the company of sacking over 800 workers.
The resolution was contained in a communiqué issued on Wednesday in Abuja by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Muhammad Maigari-Dingyadi, after a two-day conciliation meeting.
It was also agreed that Dangote Group should immediately redeploy the affected workers into its other subsidiaries within the conglomerate without any loss of pay.
The meeting, held on Monday and Tuesday, brought together key government officials, including the National Security Adviser, the Ministers of Finance, Budget and Economic Planning, and State for Petroleum (Gas). Representatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and labour leaders also took part in the talks.
The government called the meeting after PENGASSAN directed its members to halt gas supply and withdraw services from the refinery in protest. The union accused the company of terminating the employment of over 800 staff, describing the move as unfair and unacceptable.
Dangote Refinery, however, explained during the meeting that the disengagement was due to a restructuring exercise currently ongoing within the company.
According to the communiqué signed by the Labour Minister, “the meeting resolved that unionisation is a fundamental right of workers under Nigerian law and must be respected by the company.”
Dr. Maigari-Dingyadi added that “no worker will be victimised for participating in the dispute between PENGASSAN and the company.”
PENGASSAN, in response, agreed to commence the process of calling off its strike. Both the union and the refinery management pledged to implement the resolutions in good faith and to maintain industrial harmony going forward.
The resolution marks a major step in easing tensions in the oil and gas sector, with the Federal Government stressing that dialogue remains the most effective way of settling disputes between employers and workers.
