The Federal Government has announced that the Dangote Group will reabsorb employees who were recently disengaged from its refinery operations, following a truce with the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr. Mohammed Maigari Dingyadi, disclosed this in Abuja on Wednesday, stating that the affected workers would be redeployed to other subsidiaries within the Dangote Group without any loss of pay.
“After reviewing the disengagement process, both parties agreed that the management of Dangote Group will immediately commence the redeployment of the affected staff across its companies. No worker will be victimised for their role in the dispute,” Dingyadi said.
He added that PENGASSAN had agreed to begin the process of calling off its strike, while both sides reached a compromise in “good faith.”
The minister further emphasised that unionisation remains a fundamental right of workers under Nigerian law and must be respected by all employers.
The development follows days of deadlocked negotiations between PENGASSAN and Dangote Refinery. The union had accused the refinery of mass sackings and alleged that some Nigerian staff were being replaced with foreign workers, a claim the management denied, insisting the restructuring was purely operational.
The crisis escalated when PENGASSAN cut crude oil and gas supply to the refinery, raising fears of disruptions to Nigeria’s energy supply. The Federal Government waded in, warning that the standoff could threaten national economic and energy stability.
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