President Muhammadu Buhari, who doubles as Minister of Petroleum Resources.

The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers NUPENG has given some multinational oil firms operating in Nigeria a 14-day ultimatum to address some lingering welfare-related issues for its members or face a strike action, an indication that another round of scarcity of products, especially the Premium Motor Spirit PMS, also called petrol might be looming as the Yuletide season approaches. The ultimatum is with effect from Monday, November 15, 2021.

Part of the welfare issues listed include the outstanding short -payment of terminal benefits to members declared redundant by the management of Chevron Nigeria Limited since 2012, insisting that these benefits were in line with the subsisting Collective Bargaining Agreement as at the time the workers were laid off. This fact, according to the union, has been severally established but Chevron management unscrupulously short paid these workers and locked them out of its premises.

In a statement jointly signed by the President of the union, Comrade Williams Akporeha and General Secretary, Comrade Olawale Afolabi, said this was part of the resolutions reached at the end of the Special National Delegates Conference of the union convened Thursday last week to amend some clauses of its constitution.

The union warned that if nothing was done by the concerned parties to conclusively address these welfare issues, many of which have been resolved in the workers’ favour by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment within the 14-day time frame, the union will be left no other choice but to embark on a nationwide strike action.

Also listed was the manner Chevron management terminated the employment of contract workers in MUYIDEEN and YKISH, labour contractors allegedly because the affected workers consented to joining the union and that when the employments of these workers who have variously put in between 10 to 20 years in continuous employment were terminated, no money has been paid to them as terminal benefits.

There is also the matter concerning PYRAMIDT workers, who for more than 20 years have been moved from one labour contractor to another without condition of service and union representation or recognition, adding that the struggle for the unionisation of these have spanned several years with workers remaining resolute to be members of NUPENG.

Other grounds for the strike include the issue of contract workers in OML 42 of NPDC, which are being continuously owed salaries and allowances for upwards of eight to 10 months, regretting that every effort to make management of NPDC and the contractors do the right thing to address the pitiable plights of these hapless workers have not received any meaningful attention and actions.

It also listed the Nigeria Agip Oil Company and its contractors, which are owing contracts workers’ salaries and allowances for upwards of 10 months, adding that these workers are being denied salaries and allowances on very inhuman and wicked excuses that the contractors are yet to fulfill certain due process. The union argued that such due process does not stop NAOC from exploiting the skills and sweats of these Nigerians for profits while the workers and their families are wallowing in hardship and poverty.

The union also frowned at the ploy by the NAOC, which has since early 2020 been using the excuse of COVID- 19 to keep several members of the union away from work without pay while using casual/daily paid workers to do their work even while there is a subsisting contract.

The statement reads in part: “We write to convey to the general public and all relevant government agencies the resolution of the Special National Delegates Conference to issue a 14- day notice of a nationwide industrial action if some legitimate welfare and Membership- related issues that have been variously resolved in our Favour even by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment are not adequately and conclusively addressed and resolved within the next 14 days.

“The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment has ruled that the contractor should accedes to the demands of the workers to belong to NUPENG after receiving the report of the Visitation Panel sent by the Ministry to the workplace to determine the nature of work and services these workers are rendering.

“Several of these workers have left jobs after several years through old age or death and they left without any terminal benefits to show for several years of service.

“The Special National Delegates Conference in session noted with deep disappointment that despite the fact that these issues have been tabled before different government agencies/institutions and they have been resolved, the decisions remain unimplemented while our members keep suffering in excruciating jeopardy.

“It was therefore resolved and directed, that these issues do not require any further meetings or negotiations but decisive actions and implementation of all established issues within the period of our notice to all concerned. Our Solidarity remains constant for the union makes us strong”