Tag: JOHESU

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EDUCATION NEWS & LIFE

UCH health workers join JOHESU nationwide strike

UCH resident doctors on strike over unpaid salaries
UCH

Healthcare workers at the University College Hospital (UCH), Ibadan, on Monday, joined the nationwide strike called by the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU).

Many essential places in the hospital, including the pharmacy, the medical records section and two of the main gates into the hospital were locked.

The JOHESU Chairman, UCH Chapter, Mr Adeolu Alli, said the strike became imperative after “a long period” — three years of waiting on the Federal Government.

He said that the government has seemingly taken the patience of the striking workers for granted.
“We are on strike at the moment and our members have gone home.

“The level of compliance is almost 98 per cent. The government must meet our demands.

“On September 30, 2017, there was an agreement with the Federal Government on some of these issues most especially the adjustment of our salary structure.

“Three months later, that was April and May 2018, we had to go on strike again because the government failed to fulfill its part of the agreement,” he said.

According to him, JOHESU makes up over 94 per cent of workers in the government-owned hospitals.

“JOHESU is made up of over 94 per cent of workers in the hospitals, except doctors.

“Obviously there is nothing that can be done without this workforce but unfortunately, the Federal Ministry of Health has been biased all along.

“We have tried our best. We have been patient enough but it is unfortunate that they are taking our patience for granted,” he said.

Mr Toye Akinrinlola, the UCH’s Public Relations Officer, said that the hospital’s management had made arrangement with available manpower to render skeletal services and attend to critical cases.

He said that the accident and the emergency units, the ICU, staff clinic, antenatal emergency and labour ward, would remain open.

JOHESU is the umbrella body of five affiliate unions including the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), Nigeria Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP) and Medical and Health Workers’ Union (MHWUN).

Others are Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRIAI) and Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN).

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EDUCATION NEWS & LIFE

JOHESU strike unnecessary, illegal – FG

USUN, PASAN strike to end soon-FG
Ngige

The Federal Government has described the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) strike scheduled to commence on Sunday midnight as “unnecessary, ill-timed and illegal”.

Sen. Chris Ngige, Minister of Labour and Employment, said this in a statement signed by Mr Charles Akpan, Deputy Director, Press and Public Relations, in the ministry, on Sunday in Abuja.

The union had, in a letter addressed to Ngige, said it would go ahead with the strike scheduled to commence in the midnight of Sunday.

It cited Federal Government’s inability to meet its demand as the reason for its action.

Ngige said that the Federal Government had directed that the various unions in the health sector operating under the umbrella of JOHESU should not to go ahead with the strike.

He urged the leadership of the various unions that made up JOHESU to have a rethink on the illegal strike by putting the welfare of their patients and Nigeria above every other consideration.

He noted that issues in the trade dispute between JOHESU and the Ministry of Health were being discussed.

According to him, going ahead with the action would be illegal as it is in clear breach of the ILO Principles and Conventions on Strike and Section 18 of the Trades Disputes Act, Cap T8, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

“Parties in disputes are expected not to arm-twist, intimidate or foist helplessness on the other party while negotiations are ongoing as per Sections 8 and 18 the of Trade Dispute Act (TDA) 2004.

“This bars any strike when the matters are before a Conciliator and undergoing conciliation.

“Any strike now is inimical to an equable settlement of the dispute, bearing in mind especially that this is a grave period of a pandemic where the Federal Government has spent about N20 billion to pay April/May 2020 hazard allowance.

“An additional N8.9 billion for June 2020 COVID-19 hazard and inducement allowances has also been approved to all categories of health workers that are mainly JOHESU members.

“Besides, all health workers on essential services -Pharmacists, Nurses/Midwives, Radiographers as members of JOHESU – are statutorily barred from strikes during emergencies, by both the ILO Statutes and the Trade Dispute Act 2004.

“Such an action while the nation battles the COVID-19 emergency accentuates its illegality, as it will compound and aggravate the challenges in health services, causing further risk and deaths to the sick in hospitals across the country,” he said.

He noted that COVID-19 pandemic had been declared as a situation of “Acute National Health crisis” by both the ILO and World Health Organisation (WHO), whose Statutes and regulations had forbidden strike for the period.

He also added that the withdrawal of services was clearly unnecessary as the Federal Government had demonstrated capacity in her amelioration of age-long challenges in the health sector.

Ngige, however, said that government had addressed most of the demands of the union which included provision of enough Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), approving N29 billion for payments of allowances and also spending N9.3billion as premium for Group Life Insurance for medical and health workers.

He also noted that during the last negotiation, the meeting resolved all the issues raised by JOHESU against the Ministry of Health.

“This is with exception to the issue of CONHESS adjustment which is before the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN).

“Same goes for the issue of refund of the two months 2018 April/May salaries caught up in the ‘No Work No Pay’ principle when JOHESU was on a long strike of over two months, which was also a substrata of the strike issue at the National Industrial Court of Nigeria (NICN) of 2018,” he said.

He noted that the union and the Ministry of Health were advised to resolve the issues and report back in four weeks.

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NEWS & LIFE

COVID-19: JOHESU issues 7-day warning strike notice to FG

Strike: It has been series of unfulfilled promises - LASUTH doctors

The leadership of the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) says it will commence nationwide warning strike over Federal Government’s failure to meet the union’s outstanding demands with effect from September 13.

Mr Biobelemoye Josiah, the JOHESU Chairman, said this during a news conference in Abuja on Monday.

Josiah listed the alleged shortchanging of the union in the payment of COVID-19 Special Inducement and Hazard Allowance (SIHA) to frontline health workers, as part of the union’s demands.

“It becomes imperative to inform you that if the federal government does not meet these demands by midnight of September 13, JOHESU will have no choice than to commence a nationwide seven days warning strike.

“The strike will include our members in all the Federal Health Institutions (FHIs), states and Local Government health institutions,” Josiah said.

According to him, JOHESU is forced to draw attention to the deliberate short-changing of our members in the payment of COVID-19 inducement allowances.

“The Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) ought to redress and supervise the adherence to the payment of 40 per cent or 50 per cent COVID-19 SIHA as appropriate to all health workers in Isolation Centres, FHIs and other related health facilities.

“This is without discrimination bordering on clinical or non-clinical status based on our Memorandum of Understanding of April 21 and as admitted by the FMoH at a meeting of July 1 that the payment of 10 per cent was done in error.

“Consequently, FMoH agreed to correct the anomaly and pay the outstanding balance of 40 per cent of Consolidated Basic Salary to all the beneficiaries hitherto earning N5,000 as hazard allowance.

“The federal government did not ensure total and full implementation of the July 1 agreement with JOHESU when it disbursed the third tranche of the allowance for June.

“This has created grumbling across our membership and the challenge of assuaging the affected and restive members.

“The situation has made it impossible to guarantee industrial harmony within the generality of JOHESU members,” Josiah said.

He expressed concern that government was not forthcoming in the payment of all withheld salaries of members at Jos University Teaching Hospital, Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, including the April and May 2018 salaries and adjustment of CONHESS salary structure.

The JOHESU chairman also decried the recent increase in the pump price of fuel and hike in electricity tariff in the country.

“We at JOHESU take cognisance of the deregulation of fuel prices by the Petroleum Pricing Regulatory Agency.

“We, in strong terms, reject the hike in electricity tariff, especially at this critical period occasioned by COVID-19 because it clearly increases the sufferings of poor Nigerians.

“As a short term solution, we demand urgent fixing of our refineries to begin local refining and mitigate the volatility of the petroleum products prices with attendant anti-masses effect,” he said.

The union also called on the Federal Inland Revenue Service to reverse the new stamp duties to be paid by tenants in properties, describing its introduction as unacceptable.

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HEADLINES

Strike: JOHESU issues 7-day ultimatum

The Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) on Monday issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Federal Government to meet its demands.
Mr Josiah Biobelemoye, the National Chairman of the union, said this at a warning rally organised by the union in collaboration with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), among other stakeholders, to drive home the challenges bedeviling the health sector in Abuja.
Biobelemoye noted that the seven days ultimatum, effective from Jan. 4, was given due to the intervention of clerics and their love for the Nigerian populace.
“We decided to seek God’s intervention by reporting our offenders to him. Last Friday we attended the Juma’at Prayers while on Sunday we attended Church Service.
“Fortunately and unfortunately, we met the Minister of Health in the church where we worship and the Overseer told him that he is in a better position to resolve this matter and allow the populace to receive better health.
“The cleric further pleaded with us to exercise some patience, hence we decided to give the seven days ultimatum after which we will report to the NLC that decided to take over the matter,” Biobelemoye noted.
The chairman listed the demands of the union as unjustified withholding of the salaries of its members for April and May last year, upward adjustment of CONHESS Salary Structure and headship of hospital departments.
Others, according to him, are implementation of consultancy cadre for JOHESU members and punitive actions against its members at Federal Medical Centre Owerri and Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH).
He specifically noted that these demands were outside the ones under the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR).
Biobelemoye added that the rally was basically informed due to the violation of the May 30 Court Order by the Federal Ministry of Health.
According to him, the court ordered the union to suspend the action and also said no party should do anything that will jeopardise the peace in places of work.
“While we are in the ARD discussing, the Federal Ministry of Health decided to indiscriminately implement no-work-no-pay after the court has said no one should do anything to provoke the other.
“We refused to take action for over seven months that they violated the court’s order because we are mindful of the fact that every strike affects the common man negatively.
“We know that public health institutions are the cheapest for the Nigerian populace so we were reluctant of embark on strike for over seven months.
“We have used the means of dialogue to impress it on the federal ministry of health and its management that they are violating a court order but to no avail.
“We use this medium to tell Nigerians that have opportunity of interacting with those in authority specifically the minister of health to do the needful,” he said.
Earlier, the NLC President, Mr Ayuba Waba, said he would map out actions to ensure the demand of over 90 per cent of the health work force was meant.
Waba further noted that it would work out modalities to compel the minister of health to respect the collective agreement reached with the union.
He specifically quoted the National Industrial Court judgment as stipulating that no health worker should be denied of skipping, arrears and salary adjustment, among others.
According to him, instead of obeying that judgment by paying the over 90 per cent workers their dues, the minister paid the medical doctors, which is unfair and unjust.
“We will mobilise Nigerian workers to battle, collective bargaining agreement must be respected. He who comes to equity must come with clean hands,” Waba said. (NAN)