FG Settles Dispute Between Dangote Refinery And PENGASSAN

The Federal Government has ended the industrial dispute between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria after two days of intensive conciliation meetings.

The resolution was announced on Wednesday by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, who said both sides reached an agreement after hours of discussions.

As part of the settlement, the government reaffirmed that unionisation remains the right of every worker under Nigerian law. The refinery management also agreed to redeploy staff earlier disengaged to other companies within the Dangote Group without any loss of pay.

It was further agreed that no employee would face retaliation over their role in the standoff. Following this, PENGASSAN consented to begin the process of suspending its strike action.

The negotiations, which initially ended in a deadlock on Monday, resumed at the Office of the National Security Adviser on Tuesday afternoon and stretched late into the night before a breakthrough was reached.

Those present at the meeting included National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu, Finance Minister Wale Edun, Budget and Economic Planning Minister Atiku Bagudu, State Minister for Labour Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, and the heads of the DSS and NIA, alongside Dingyadi.

The rift originated from allegations by PENGASSAN that the refinery carried out mass transfers and dismissals targeting union members, while also replacing some Nigerian workers with foreign staff. Dangote Group had denied the claims.

The Federal Government waded into the matter over fears that the crisis could disrupt economic stability and threaten energy security, leading to the eventual compromise reached by both parties.