Nigerian oil workers take industrial action

Nigeria’s two main oil workers’ unions have gone on a nationwide strike that will potentially threaten the country’s oil production volume in addition to the financial burden of crashing world oil prices.

The two unions, Nupeng and Pengassan, have made clear that Monday’s strike by union members will continue until the government deals with their issues, which include maintenance work on the country’s oil refineries as well as adoption of the long-delayed Petroleum Industry Bill that is geared towards overhauling the sector.

“We’ve commenced the strike. It will affect oil production, since all operations are on strike,” Pengassan chief, Babatunde, told Reuters.

This is while an oil industry executive in the country insisted that the strike was unlikely to affect output, since it would require the cooperation of a large number of oil workers at production sites who would not be willing to join the protest.

Prior to the current strike, the two unions were demanding the reinstatement of their representatives who had been sacked by oil companies.

However, the list of their demands has expanded as they are now complaining that the government has allowed Nigeria’s oil refineries to fall into disrepair.

They are also calling for lowering of the price of gasoline and measures to halt oil theft in the industry.