The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has ordered a nationwide shutdown by its members following the alleged mass dismissal of more than 800 Nigerian workers by Dangote Refinery.
In a circular issued after an emergency National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Saturday, September 27, 2025, and signed by General Secretary Lumumba Okugbawa, PENGASSAN accused the refinery of violating Nigeria’s labour laws, the Constitution, and International Labour Organisation conventions by sacking employees for joining the union.
The NEC also alleged that the refinery replaced the dismissed workers with “over 2,000 Indians,” calling the move “an affront to all workers in Nigeria.”
To enforce its demands, the union directed members at field locations to down tools starting 6:00 a.m. on Sunday, September 28, 2025, and ordered a total nationwide withdrawal of services across offices, companies, institutions, and agencies from 12:01 a.m. on Monday, September 29, 2025.
“All PENGASSAN members working across field locations are to withdraw services effective 06:00hrs on Sunday, 28 September 2025 and commence 24-hour prayers. This includes all control room operations, panel operations, and outfield personnel,” the letter read.
The circular also instructed international oil company (IOC) branches to reduce gas production and halt supply to Dangote Refinery and its petrochemical facilities, with interventions allowed only where personnel or asset safety is at risk.
The NEC further announced continuous prayer vigils and called on the government to intervene, vowing that the strike would not be suspended until all dismissed workers are reinstated.
“An injury to one is an injury to all. No man is bigger than our country,” the statement added.
The development marks a major escalation in the ongoing labour dispute involving the refinery. Dangote Refinery, in a letter dated September 24, 2025, defended the dismissals as a response to alleged sabotage that endangered operations at its 650,000-barrel-per-day plant.
While PENGASSAN maintains that 800 workers were laid off, the company denied carrying out a mass sacking, insisting it was undergoing internal restructuring and that most of its workforce remains Nigerian.
If fully enforced, the strike could significantly disrupt crude oil and gas supply to the refinery and cause ripple effects across Nigeria’s downstream sector.
