NAFDAC workers suspend strike for one month

The union resolved to suspend the strike after a meeting with the National Security Officer, Nuhu Ribadu, on Thursday.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) chapter of the Medical and Health Workers’ Association has suspended its indefinite strike for a month.

The Chairman of the union, Adetoye Ayodeji, confirmed this development to PREMIUM TIMES in a telephone interview on Friday.

The union, according to him, resolved to suspend the strike after a meeting with the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, on Thursday.

At the meeting, it was resolved that the union would suspend its strike for a month to allow Mr Ribadu to mediate with the NAFDAC management on their behalf.

“It was suspended for one month. Mr Ribadu took it upon himself that he was going to engage and he asked that we give him some time. We considered that one month should be enough for this. It was suspended for one month to allow the mediation process,” Mr Ayodeji told PREMIUM TIMES.

Back story

The union had earlier embarked on an indefinite strike to protest what they described as the poor welfare conditions and remuneration by the agency’s management.

The workers declared the strike after a 14-day ultimatum issued to management on 20 September expired without resolution of the issues in contention.

Demands

The union demanded among other things, the payment of 2022 outstanding salary arrears for employees and the disbursement of all outstanding burial expenses, life insurance payments, and repatriation allowances.

It called for an immediate review and re-evaluation of the 2024 Promotion Examination results, which it claimed saw a pass rate of only 35 per cent.

The association said it deemed the percentage of those who passed the exam unacceptable and demanded a minimum pass rate of 80 per cent for current and future examinations. It also called for the review of the current promotion examination content, describing it as excessively academic and disconnected from actual staff responsibilities.

It also expresses concern over the “practice of staff members personally financing local and foreign trips and subsequently seeking reimbursement.

“Moving forward, all official travel expenses must be fully covered by management prior to the commencement of any local or international trips,” the union said.

But the Director General of NAFDAC, Mojisola Adeyeye, a professor, said the reasons advanced by the striking workers against the agency are not true.

Mrs Adeyeye, who spoke in a telephone interview with our reporter at the commencement of the strike, said whether it is a matter of promotion or estacode, the agency has been following the rules and is committed to promoting the workers’ welfare.