The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has thrown its weight behind the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) in its ongoing dispute with Dangote Refinery over fuel distribution.
In a statement signed by NLC President Joe Ajaero on Saturday, the union warned that Nigerian workers must not be sacrificed for corporate interests, stressing that its solidarity with NUPENG is “non-negotiable.”
The dispute stems from Dangote Refinery’s reported policy that drivers recruited for its fleet of 10,000 compressed natural gas (CNG) trucks will not be allowed to join any trade union. This led NUPENG to direct its Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) branch to stop loading petroleum products from Dangote depots beginning Monday, September 8.
The NLC accused Dangote Group of anti-union practices, monopolistic tendencies, and exploitative labour strategies, noting that several other unions had also raised similar complaints in the past. It alleged that workers were being denied their constitutional right to freedom of association and were instead forced into “company unions” created to weaken collective bargaining.
According to the statement, Dangote’s business practices—including casualisation, poor wages, unsafe working conditions, and preference for foreign workers over qualified Nigerians—run contrary to the International Labour Organization’s Decent Work agenda. The NLC also claimed that instead of reducing costs for Nigerians, Dangote was exploiting scarcity and distribution control to raise prices, worsening poverty across the country.
The labour body issued a list of demands, including an immediate end to anti-union policies, full unionization of Dangote Group companies, and government intervention to enforce compliance with labour laws. It also warned that failure to act could trigger nationwide industrial resistance.
“The attack on NUPENG is an attack on the entire Nigerian workforce,” the NLC declared, vowing that it would resist any attempt to undermine workers’ rights. It warned that if Dangote does not reverse its policies, the Congress would mobilize all Nigerian workers to confront what it described as “monopoly capitalism and class exploitation.”
