Negotiations between the Federal Government, organised labour, and the Dangote Group over the ongoing dispute with the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) ended without resolution late Monday night in Abuja, leaving the nationwide strike set to continue on Tuesday, September 8.
The talks reportedly broke down after Sayyu Dantata, who represented the Dangote Group, walked out of discussions with Labour Minister Muhammad Dingyadi and labour leaders. At the centre of the dispute is the unionisation of workers at the Dangote Refinery.
Insiders at the meeting said the Dangote team maintained that joining a union should remain voluntary, while the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and NUPENG insisted that all employees must be given unhindered rights to unionise.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Minister Dingyadi admitted that discussions ended in a stalemate.
“There are issues we have not been able to reach a final agreement on. Since it was getting late and some of the parties were travelling to Lagos, we had to call off the meeting until tomorrow. But I am confident that by tomorrow, we should be able to resolve these issues,” he said.
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Earlier, the NLC had issued a “Red Alert” to the government and the Dangote Group, accusing the company of “anti-union practices, monopolistic agenda and indecent industrial relations strategies.” The body argued that such policies breach Section 40 of the Constitution, the Labour Act, and conventions of the International Labour Organisation ratified by Nigeria.
The NLC demanded the immediate unionisation of Dangote Refinery and all subsidiaries, warning of escalated nationwide solidarity actions if the company fails to comply.
“If Dangote continues on this reckless anti-union path, we will confront this tyranny head-on until victory is secured for Nigerian workers,” the NLC vowed.
