…Sacked workers to be redeployed across Dangote Group
Abuja — The Federal Government has successfully brokered peace between the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) and Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited following a strike that commenced on Monday, September 29, 2025.
According to a press release signed by Patience Onuobia, Head of Information and Public Relations, the resolution was reached after a conciliation meeting convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, at the instance of the Federal Government.
The communique issued after the meeting stated that the disengaged workers at Dangote Refinery will be absorbed into other companies within the Dangote Group without any loss of pay, while PENGASSAN has agreed to begin the process of calling off its strike.
The statement further reaffirmed that unionisation is a right of workers under Nigerian law and must be respected. It also emphasized that no worker would be victimised for their role in the dispute.
“After examining the procedure used in the disengagement of workers, the meeting agreed that the management of Dangote shall immediately start the process of taking the disengaged staff to other companies within the Dangote Group, with no loss of pay. PENGASSAN agreed to start the process of calling off the strike. Both parties agreed to this understanding in good faith,” the communique read.
The meeting, which began at the Ministry of Labour and Employment on Monday, September 29, and continued at the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) on Tuesday, September 30, 2025, was attended by top government officials and security chiefs. Among them were the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Minister of State for Labour and Employment, heads of the DSS, NIA, NUPRC, NMDPRA, representatives of NNPCL, and the Permanent Secretaries of the Ministries of Labour and Petroleum Resources.
The leadership of PENGASSAN had earlier directed its members to halt gas supply to Dangote Refinery and withdraw services nationwide in protest of the disengagement of over 800 workers. However, the Dangote Management explained that the decision was part of an ongoing reorganisation within the company.
With the intervention of the Federal Government, the industrial impasse has been resolved, averting a potential nationwide energy crisis.
