Workers of Addax Petroleum Development Company Limited on Thursday paralysed activities at the Corporate Headquarters of the company located along Ozumba Mbadiwe in Victoria Island over alledged takeover of the company by Sinopec Group, a Chinese company “without resolving the issues raised by the labour union.”
The workers also threatened to shut down the company’s over 200,000 crude oil production by next week if their demands were not met.
The workers under the umbrella of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) accused management of the company of insincerity and of attempt to short change workers after contributing immensely to the growth of the company.
THISDAY learnt that the management of the company had out of apprehension asked the workers to go on a one day break. However, the workers defied the holiday and came to work to protest the alleged injustice by the management. They maintained that the action would enter a new phase next week if the management fail to address their demand.
The staff numbering 231 alleged that four expatriates in the company were paid 84 million dollars as benefits while “they are only demanding $15 million as benefits and other compensation for their contributions towards the growth of the company”.
THISDAY further gathered that they were allegations of compromise and connivance by officials of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation NNPC with the management to deny workers their dues despite directives from the Group Managing Director of NNPC that the issue be resolved amicably.
Speaking on the development, Chairman of Lagos Zone of PENGASSAN, Comrade Folunsho Oginni, explained that NNPC had intervened to avoid a possible shut down of the company’s crude production because of crisis in the Niger Delta region and its effect on the oil production with the promise that issues would be resolved within two weeks.
He lamented that instead of resolving the matter, management of the company went ahead to do due diligence with officials of Sinopec.
Oginni who accused the management of insincerity, alleged that the leaders of PENGASSAN were in possession of the document where management allegedly told Sinopec that there was neither a trade union in the company nor any labour issue to be addressed.
Speaking further, he said management and leaders of PENGASSAN met yesterday without reaching any compromise. However, he said that the union has vowed that normalcy would not return to the company until the workers demands are duly met.
Meanwhile efforts by THISDAY to reach the company proved abortive.
PENGASSAN had last month issued an ultimatum to the management of Addax to resolve all labour issues before consummating the sale of the company with any prospective buyer. The ultimatum ended July 3, 2009.
Jul252009