Dangote: Unionisation is workers’ right, should be respected — Labour Minister

*The tripartite meeting between the Federal Government, Dangote Petroleum Refinery and PENGASSAN agree that the Management of company shall immediately begin the process of redeploying the disengaged staff to other companies within the Dangote Group, with no loss of pay

Alexander Davis | ConsumerConnect

The Federal Government has explained how it brokered peace between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).

Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, Honourable Minister for Labour and Employment, said the government was able to do this after lengthy discussions.

Dingyadi, who disclosed this development Wednesday, October 1, 2025, in a statement, restated that unionisation remains the workers’ right in the economy, and such should be respected.

The statement noted: “The Honourable Minister of Labour informed the meeting that unionisation is a right of workers in accordance with the laws of Nigeria, and this right should be respected.

“After examining the procedure used in the disengagement of workers, the meeting agreed that the Management of Dangote Group shall immediately begin the process of redeploying the disengaged staff to other companies within the Dangote Group, with no loss of pay.”

The government said: “No worker will be victimised arising from their role in the impasse between Dangote and PENGASSAN. “PENGASSAN agreed to start the process of calling off the strike. Both parties agreed to this understanding in good faith.”

It should be noted that as the official resolution might cause the sacked workers to heave a sigh of relief, they believe that what had happened in the past few days was necessary.

Poor pay, healthcare plan with no promotion at Dangote Refinery, staff allege

A process engineer, who has worked at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, who solicited anonymity, said the staff joined PENGASSAN after years of frustration over poor conditions, stagnant pay and lack of safety measures.

The personnel claimed that the company did not care about its workers and their health, adding that many had nothing like an HMO plan, FIJ report said.

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The staff also said: “All the while, no promotion. The 25 percent salary increase only came in January after BUA raised its staff salaries by 50 percent for the third time, even though inflation has gone up by almost 300 percent since I joined.”

According to the process engineer, expatriate workers some with little experience are treated better than Nigerian staff at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

He further noted: “We are the ones who train them when they arrive, but after a while they are made our bosses.

“They say we have HMO, but in reality, we don’t. The clinic drugs are poor quality, imported and ineffective, so most of us still buy medicines with our small salaries.”

The engineer averred: “They tell the world they provide good healthcare, but it’s not true.

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“We also don’t get real allowances. There’s a section in our salary slip called ‘others’. Before, it was just N1,000.

“After the increment, it became N54,000. But everything we need — like PPE or allowances — comes from ‘others’. That’s not sustainable.”

Workers in the refinery, the staff alleged, work long hours with inadequate compensation.

According to him, while workers work for 12 hours daily, they are supposed to be paid an overtime of four hours, but the refinery paid them for three hours instead.

He explained: “We work 12 to 13 hours with no breaks, but they deduct one hour from our overtime pay as if we took a break. Out of four hours’ overtime, we are only paid for three.”

The Dangote employee disclosed that engineers earn about N400,000 monthly, including overtime.

After taxes and deductions, take-home pay can fall below N200,000.

He stated: “We are even taxed on allowances like birthdays or overtime. Out of N500,000, you could be taxed as much as N164,000.”

Allegation of poor safety conditions at work

The staff equally alleged poor safety conditions at work in the company.

The employee as well disclosed that there are no Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and proper health facilities.

Some of his colleagues have bought medications to take care of their health with personal money, he said.

He further lamented: “For years, hazard allowance was just N1,000. Later they added N54,000 to our salary and called it ‘others’.

Asked why, they said every allowance “we feel entitled to is inside that N54,000.”

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