Barely nine months into the year, industrial unrest in the nation’s health sector has produced no less than 40 strikes, Minister of Labour and Productivity, Chief Emeka Wogu, has revealed.

The Minister stated this at the weekend during the first Annual Lecture/Symposium of Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals, NUAHP.

The event which took place in Abuja had the theme: “Incessant Strike in the Health Sector: Causes and Challenges.”

According to Wogu, the causes of incessant strike in the sector could be attributed to issues bordering on conditions of service, establishment and rivalry between medical doctors and other health professionals.

His words: “The health sector has witnessed a lot of unrest and strikes in the past few months. In fact, the sector has had not less than 40 strikes this year. It is worthy of note that the health sector is not only of the essential services but veryvital to the whole economy.

“It is the engine on which economic growth and development is built for a healthy nation is a wealthy nation,” the Minister added.

He pointed out that government had tried to ensure smooth running of the sector, but for some reasons, he reasoned, the efforts have not worked out as desired.

While noting that incessant strikes in the sector are fueled by negotiating skills and competences of medical doctors and other health professionals in the sector, he urged that underlining word in industrial relations is compromise.

“It is never a win-win situation, parties must be willing to let go and come back again to re-negotiate. A situation where a party maintains a stance and refuses to compromise normally will result in deadlock that may result in strikes. When negotiations are in process or any kind of intervention by relevant government agency, workers are not supposed to strike; and there should be no lockout,” he maintained.

Wogu however lauded the workers for their efforts in the containment of Ebola virus disease in the country.