PENGASSAN, NUPENG suspend strike

Members of Nigeria’s major labour unions in the oil and gas sector have suspended the strike they embarked upon in protest against the non-payment of their salaries.

Officials of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) workers said the strike was called off after various agreements were reached with the Federal Government.

The National Public Relations Officer, PENGASSAN, who doubles as the Rivers State Secretary of the Trade Union Congress, Fortune Obi, confirmed the suspension on Tuesday.

“Strike suspended as Federal Government agrees to pay the owed salaries while the IPPS (Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System) is sorted out in the future,” he said.

Members of PENGASSAN in the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and some of its agencies had on August 13, 2020, commenced a three-day warning strike.

The senior workers had downed tools in protest against the non-payment of their salaries for the past three months and also to kick against the Federal Government’s inclusion of oil workers in the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System.

It was, however, gathered on Tuesday morning that the two unions had an impromptu meeting with the Accountant-General of the Federation on Monday night in Abuja.

At the meeting, it was resolved that the three months salary arrears owed the oil workers be paid through the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System platform.

It was also agreed that all affected agencies were to submit a copy of the letter the OAGF sent to them and the soft copy of salary upload for May, June, and July 2020.

Parties at the meeting resolved that a new date would be fixed for all stakeholders to meet and discuss concerns surrounding the enrollment of oil workers on the IPPIS platform.

They noted that with this development, the strike was hereby suspended.