NUPENG suspends strike as Dangote workers can join labour unions
Following an agreement with Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals management on the controversial topic of workers’ unionization, the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has called off its statewide strike.
Both sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at a conciliation meeting called by Labor Minister Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi in Abuja.
It was stated in the resolutions that Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals will permit willing workers to become members of legally recognized unions.
This decision came after NUPENG members accused the Dangote Group of depriving workers the opportunity to join recognized labor unions during two days of industrial action.
When the dispute came to a head, the federal government stepped in through the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
The process of unionization will start right away and be finished in two weeks, from September 9 to September 22, 2025.
Additionally, the agreement states that no employee would face consequences for taking part in the strike.
A part of the MoU read: “That since workers’ unionisation is a right in line with the provisions of the extant laws, the management of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals agreed to the unionisation of employees of Dangote Refinery and unionisation of employees of Petrochemicals, who are willing to unionise.
“That the process of unionisation shall commence immediately and be completed within two weeks (9th–22nd September, 2025), and it was agreed that the employer will not set up any other union.
“Arising from the strike notice, no worker or employee of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals will be victimised.”
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC), the Dangote Group, NUPENG, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), and the Ministry of Labour and Employment all signed the agreement.
