Oil workers threaten a three-day warning strike

The Nigerian Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) have jointly threatened to hold a three-day warning strike in protest on the forced enrolment of union members into the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS).

From Wednesday, oil installations will be put on hold as union members threaten to refuse to come to work.  

A spokesperson for PENGASSAN reiterated how oil workers had rejected IPPIS and any attempt to force union members to enter the Information System would be an infringement of their workers’ rights.

"We have intimated the Minister of Labour and Employment as well as the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources. Well, the ball is in the court of government to intervene in the matter before it degenerates.

“We have already asked our members to be ready for any eventuality.

“So, between Monday and the close of work on Tuesday, if nothing concrete comes from the Federal Government, we will have no option than to direct our members to proceed on three days warning strike from Wednesday, June 24, 2020."

In a letter to the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, the General Secretaries of PENGASSAN and NUPENG outlined their complaints once more:

"[In talks between unions and the government] we have been meeting with the IPPIS to consider its peculiarities in coming unto the IPPIS platform, instead of a blanket implementation.

“These talks have not been concluded and we called for a resumption of talks in order to resolve the issues raised and, where required, provide additional information to the IPPIS.

If the government does not resolve the crisis in oil production, Nigeria’s most valuable source of wealth will grind to an ungainly halt.

Photo: Nairametrics