As Nigeria workers joined the rest of the world to celebrate Workers' Day, the country's health workers in the country have issued a 15-day ultimatum to the Federal Government to implement all outstanding agreement entered into with it.

 

The workers under the  umbrella Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and Assembly of Health Professionals Association (AHPA) told journalists in Abuja on Thursday that failure by government to release appropriate circulars to give effect to all the negotiated issues, they would embark on an indefinite strike.

 

On the 10th of  May 2012, an agreement was signed between federal ministry of Health and JOHESU over five important issues namely:

 

Reconstruction of Boards of Management of Tertiary Health institutions; promotion of our members from CONHESS 14 to 15 as directors; increase in retirement age of 60 to 65 years; implementation of 2008 job evaluation report; implementation of Abdullahi Bello presidential committee report on harmony in the Health sector.

 

The workers accused the Federal Government of reneging on it's agreement just to please the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA).

 

According to the JOHESU, NMA threatened to embark on strike should the government honor some of the demands of the group.

 

Mr. Felix Faniran, National President of Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) who spoke on behalf of the group said they have been negotiating with the government for sometime now over the issues  only for the government to now turn back becuas of the threat by NMA.

 

He said: "Accordingly, JOHESU after repeated appeals commenced negotiation with government since September, 2013 but to our greatest shock and amazement, government in a volte face said it was unable to sign and honour the collective bargained issues because of the threat by NMA to proceed on strike if government accede to our legitimate demands and painstakingly negotiated entitlements.

 

"This is provocative, insulting and unjust in the worst dimension. In a democratic dispensation and industrial marginalization in the Health sector in favor of members of the NMA which is operating illegally as if it were a registered trade union.

 

"In the light of the above development, JOHESU is constrained to issue a 15-day ultimatum to government to release appropriate circulars to give effects to all the negotiated issues, failing which our members will proceed on an indefinite total withdrawal of services from 8.00a.m on 19th of May, 2014."

 

The group also accused the Minister of Health of being bias and saying he should be held responsible should they go on strike.

 

Faniran said, “it is on this  premise, we reiterate once more that since the minister has continued to demonstrate bias in handling agitations by the JOHESU/AHPA, we hereby call on Mr. President to further intervene to avert an impending crises in the Health sector."

 

He explained that NMA in the first place lacked the power to negotiate with the government as it is not a registered trade Union and therefore warned that government should henceforth stop negotiating with it.

 

According to him: "It is important for the members of the public to know that the NMA is not a registered union, therefore it has no power and no authority, right to embark on a strike or engage  the government in negotiating salaries or go on strike as if they were labour unions.

 

“I will use this occasion to also appeal to government to stop negotiating with NMA and its associated bodies who are not registered trade unions.

 

"Judicial pronouncements have been made in this country that NMA has no right to embark on strike, but is has refused to comply with this law. But if they continue, we will be forced to take them to court."

 

He however said " NMA has the right to exist as an association, however it does not have the right to exist as a trade union. A non registered union has no right to negotiate for salaries and has no right to embark on strike."

 

The union’s are: Lopsidedness in the constitution of boards of managements of various health institutions, non invitation of some appointed members of JOHESU to boards meetings and outright exclusion of NASU in any of the Boards; increase in retirement age of Health workers from 60 to 65 years; promotion of officers from CONHESS 14 to 15 as directors; circularization of proper placement of intern medical laboratory scientists on CONHESS 8; implementation of skipping of CONHESS 10 and payment of it's accrued arrears; issuance of circular for  payment of specialist allowance to deserving officers; withdrawal of circular on Deputy CMAC; speedy adjustment of collective bargaining agreement of 2009 as it was done for other group in the same sector; appointment of CMDs/MDs of etching Hospitals, consideration to permanent staff of the Hospital rather than university based personnel and proper advertorial for appointment of CMDs/MDs in line with the extant law establishing the teaching hospitals.