The Federal Government has successfully resolved the heated labour face-off between Dangote Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), ending a dispute that had threatened Nigeria’s fuel supply stability.
After two days of intense negotiations held on Monday and Tuesday, both parties reached a truce that guarantees all disengaged workers will be reabsorbed into other Dangote Group companies without any loss of pay.
The peace meeting was convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, with top government officials in attendance, including the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu; 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.
During the talks, Dingyadi emphasized the need to uphold workers’ rights, reminding both parties that “the right of workers to unionise in accordance with Nigerian law must be respected.”
According to the communiqué released after the meeting, PENGASSAN clarified that its directive to halt gas supply and withdraw services was triggered by the termination of over 800 members at Dangote Refinery. The refinery management, however, explained that the disengagement was due to an ongoing reorganisation within the company.
Following lengthy deliberations, the parties agreed on key resolutions:
The Dangote Group will immediately begin the process of redeploying disengaged staff into other subsidiaries within the conglomerate, with no loss of pay.
No worker will face victimisation over their role in the standoff.
PENGASSAN has agreed to commence steps to call off its strike action.
Both sides pledged to honour the resolutions in good faith.
This resolution marks a major breakthrough in industrial relations, ensuring stability in the oil and gas sector and averting potential disruptions in the country’s fuel supply chain.
