Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has threatened to mobilise the 15,000 workforce in the Nigerian oil and gas industry for a mass action against Shell’s planned sack of 2,000 Nigerian workers.
There have been speculations that Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has perfected strategies to disengage the Nigerians from its 7,000 workforce, claiming the economic situation in the country as an alibi.
PENGASSAN, however, said it intends to keep a symbiotic relationship with the Federal Government for the sustainable growth of the country, but only on condition that government truly respects the rule of law and the rights of oil workers.
National President of PENGASSAN, Babatunde Ogun, speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, said that Shell has no right to sack 2,000 of its Nigerian staff, where expatriates would still retain their jobs.
According to him, Nigeria is the Senior Partner in the Joint Venture (JV) contracts that sustain the SPDC in Nigeria.
“If the Federal Government sits by the side and watch Shell sack 2,000 Nigerians in Shell because of some flimsy reasons, then government should be ready with what 15,000 oil workers will do in reaction,” he charged.
He was, however, happy that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) which controls 55 per cent of the JV with SPDC has sided with labour on the matter.
“I am glad to note that the NNPC has made it clear that since it controls the majority share in the Joint Venture, only staff of Shell who have reached retirement age, or are willing to leave, should do so.
“With this assertion, we want to make it clear that any of our members in Shell who is given a sack letter on account of “One Shell” should protest through his local chapter of PENGASSAN which will forward it to us at the national secretariat for immediate action,” he said.