Organised labour is demanding a harmonised salary structure for contract workers in the nation’s petroleum industry to ensure equal pay for jobs done in the sector.
This followed the unanimous adoption of a motion on “Harmonisation of Salary Structure for Contract Workers in the Oil Industry”, presented by the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) at the 13th Quadrennial National Delegates’ Conference of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Abuja.
Earlier, NUPENG had pointed out that the “exploitative and precarious nature of employment in the oil and gas industry by management is a thing of concern that needs to be addressed as it appears to be a policy that has come to stay with us for now.
“And if that is the case, how do we manage it effectively? It is in this light that NUPENG is advocating for a harmonised salary structure for contract workers commensurate with the industry standard.
“A harmonised salary structure for contract workers in the oil and gas industry means that wherever you are working, what you are paid should be equivalent to what another person doing the same job elsewhere is paid. That is the principle of equal pay for work of substantially equal value. salary harmonisation will check exploitative disparity by management in the sector.
“In light of this, we wish to move the motion that the Federal Government through the Ministry of Labour and Employment in conjunction with the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources should harmonise the salary structure, especially for contract workers commensurate with the oil and gas industry standard as the remuneration of those in the contract employment category is outrageously low”.
