THE Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has called off its strike following an agreement with the management of Dangote Refinery to recognise workers’ rights to unionise.
The agreement was reached at a closed-door meeting convened by the Department of State Services (DSS) and attended by the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun and representatives of the Nigeria Labour Congress.
Acting Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) General Secretary, Benson Upah, confirmed the outcome, while the Ministry of Labour said it would issue a formal statement on the decision.
The resolution followed a conciliatory meeting convened by the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment on Monday, September 8, 2025, after NUPENG threatened to embark on strike over the company’s initial refusal to recognise workers’ rights for join existing unions.
According to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed at the meeting, both parties agreed that unionisation is a right under extant labour laws, and employees of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals who wish to unionise would be allowed to do so.
The agreement said the process of unionisation would begin immediately and be completed within two weeks. After exhaustive deliberations, the following resolutions were reached by both parties:
“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 the 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 would not set up any other union.
The notice further said that no worker or employee of Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals will be victimised.
In line with the agreement, NUPENG suspended its strike with immediate effect, while both parties are expected to report back to the Minister of Labour a week after the conclusion of the exercise.
The ICIR reports that the memorandum was signed on behalf of the management by Managing Director Dangote Group, Sayyu Dantata, O.K. Ukoha, for Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA)
Other labour union officials who signed include: Benson Upah for the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), N.A. Toro for Trade Union Congress (TUC), NUPENG President Akporeha Williams, and General Secretary of NUPENG, Afolabi Olawale.
The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment was represented by Amos Falonipe, Director, Trade Union Services and Industrial Relations, signing on behalf of the minister.
An earlier report by The ICIR disclosed that the strike began with NUPENG (fuel tanker drivers’ union) on Monday, alleging that Dangote Refinery was hiring new drivers on the condition that they would not join the union.
Notably, Transport Owners’ Union previously ignored the Federal Government’s last-ditch efforts to suspend its planned industrial action, vowing to proceed with the strike in solidarity with NUPENG.
The ICIR reports that NUPENG’s strike gained both domestic and international support, including from the NLC, global union IndustriALL (Switzerland), and the International Lawyers Assisting Workers (ILAW) network (Washington).
Harrison Edeh is a journalist with the International Centre for Investigative Reporting, always determined to drive advocacy for good governance through holding public officials and businesses accountable.