NLC Joins PENGASSAN in Nationwide Strike against Dangote Refinery

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has directed its members and affiliate unions across the country to mobilise in support of the nationwide strike declared by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) against Dangote Refinery.

The directive was issued in a circular signed by NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, on Monday in Abuja.

According to the NLC, the mobilisation is part of a “full-scale, decisive engagement” against what it described as the Dangote Group’s anti-labour practices. The Congress also called for the immediate and aggressive unionisation of all workers across Dangote Group facilities within each affiliate union’s jurisdiction.

“You are requested to commence, with immediate effect, preparation for a vigorous and comprehensive unionisation of all workers within every Dangote Group facility falling under your jurisdiction,” the memo stated.

The NLC alleged that the issues raised by PENGASSAN and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) are part of a broader pattern of labour violations, describing the company’s industrial relations approach as a “capitalist pathology of union-busting, worker enslavement, and gross impunity.”

The statement went further to criticise the Dangote Refinery as being more akin to a “plantation of exploitation” than a legitimate workplace, accusing the company of consistently violating:

• Section 40 of the Nigerian Constitution (which guarantees freedom of association),

• International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 87 and 98, and

• National labour laws.

“Their facilities are not workplaces but plantations of exploitation, where the dignity of the worker is systematically crushed to maximise profit for the few,” the NLC stated.

This development follows the industrial action declared by PENGASSAN over the weekend, which includes directives to cut gas and crude oil supply to the Dangote Refinery.

Meanwhile, discussions between PENGASSAN and the management of Dangote Refinery are ongoing in a bid to resolve the dispute. The Minister of Labour and Employment, in a statement on Monday, emphasised the need for a prompt resolution in the interest of all parties — the workers, the company, and the Nigerian public.