“We Will Declare National Strike:” PENGASSAN Threatens to Disrupt Upstream Operations, Gives Reasons
- PENGASSAN has threatened that it will embark on a national strike if the federal government does not take action quickly
- The union earlier complained about anti-labour practices and discrimination of Nigerians in Sterling Oil company
- The Union president has now given the government a timelines to act, or face loss of revenue due to disruption of upstream operations
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Legit.ng journalist Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has over a decade of experience in business reporting across digital and mainstream media.
The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has threatened to disrupt upstream operations across Nigeria if the ongoing anti-labour issues are not addressed.
The group had raised its concerns about anti-labour practices going on in Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company (SEEPCo) in a protest at the company’s head office last week.
The group complained that the company was discriminating against Nigerians in favour of Indian nationals, and violating the NOGICD Act.
Source: Getty Images
PENGASSAN is asking the government to step into the matter and force SEEPCo to remove its 10,699 Indian expatriates working across 15 locations and employ qualified Nigerians into the position.
Speaking at a press conference in Abuja, the PENGASSAN President, Festus Osifo threatened that the union would withdraw its members and disrupt every upstream operation in Nigeria.
PENGASSAN pickets Sterling Oil head office
In the protest last week, PENGASSAN complained about the abuse of the expatriate quota system with Sterling Oil employing for foreign nationals than it was approved to.
PENGASSAN also disclosed that qualified and skilled Nigerians were being denied top positions in the company, in favour of Indian nationals, the PUNCH reports.
This action violated Section 32 of the Nigerian Content Development Board Act, Osifo pointed out.
At the press conference, Osifo stressed that if nothing is done to reverse the situation, PENGASSAN would withdraw its workers who make up 90% of the upstream segment.
Osifo provided no timeline for the action but noted that the union has already reached out to its members to be ready.
He said;
“We have done all these and nothing is done, we will declare a national strike. Remember, in the upstream operation of the oil and gas industry, those that are carrying out the operations, over 90% of them are our members. So, by the time we withdraw our members from the upstream, the entire upstream will be grounded.”
He explained that this includes those members working at the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, who are essential to lifting operations.
Osifo called on the government to act quickly, or else the plants would be shut down and upstream operations grounded.
NCDMB lists other violations from Sterling Oil
Source: Getty Images
Recall that the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) already announced that legal action is being taken against Sterling Oil company over repeated violations of the said act.
According to NCDMB, the company has repeatedly appointed and employed foreign nationals without getting the required approval from the board.
The company also refused to comply with the directives given to it to provide evidence of exit for the foreign nationals who were employed without permission.
FG takes legal action against Sterling Oil
In related news, the federal government has announced plans to take Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company (SEEPCo) to court over the alleged anti-labour practices and abuse of the expatriate quota system.
The government is taking this action through the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The government noted that the company had repeatedly violated the local content directives.
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Source: Legit.ng
