NUPENG begins 3-day warning strike January 9
(Nigeria) The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, members would begin a three-day nationwide warning strike by January 9, 2017, against the anti-labour practice of International Oil Companies, IOCs.
The South-West chairman of the union, Alhaji Tokunbo, told
NAN in Lagos that the warning strike was inevitable because all other options
had failed.
According to Korodo, “We are not gaining anything by going
on strike because it is not a joyful thing but as a union, we have to protect
and fight for the welfare of our members.
“We have sensitised the public and also seek the
intervention of the Federal Government over the anti-labour activities of the
IOCs on our members but we are not getting results.
“Our members that put in their best within the duration of
time they worked were not paid their severance packages by their employers when
they sacked them.
“This is a big slap and it will not be allowed. What they
are practising here in Nigeria, they cannot practise in their countries, so
that is why we say enough is enough.
“We will take the bull by the horn,’’ he said.
The chairman said that what led to the planned warning
strike was inherited by the present administration, while some occurred within
the same government.
“Two hundred and fifty members of our union were affected by
the divestment by Chevron Nigeria Ltd., in the South-East. And this is giving us a serious concern because they cannot
feed their families.
“The Minister of Labour, Sen. Chris Ngige, asked all parties
to maintain the status-quo ante and we complied because we respect the
authority. But the IOCs seem to be above the law or more powerful than
the government; they failed to maintain the status-quo ante being amicably agreed
to both parties.
“Chevron had to tell our 250 members that their contract
with it was no more binding on it because it cannot trace the company that
employed them as contract workers for it.
“The minister said that Chevron had to pay the sacked workers
but its management refused to comply.
“It got to a time when Sen.Ngige called for a meeting in
Abuja to mediate; at times its representatives would not show up. We would risk
our lives and resources to Abuja, no IOCs member would come.
“Even when their representatives came, they would be those without a mandate to represent the
organization just to frustrate the discussion,’’ he said.
He alleged that all other IOCs in the country were involved
in these anti-labour practices.
“We do not want the public to see the strike as if we are
unnecessarily punishing Nigerians. That’s why we are using this period to
protest by asking tanker drivers to hang green leaves on their trucks and our
members to wear red cloth.
“By next year, if our grievances are not addressed within
this period, we will proceed on a three-day warning strike.
“If the government and people concerned are not able to
apprehend and resolve it, we may be forced to turn the strike into an
indefinite one,’’ he said.
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