MHWUN Begins Nationwide Strike

The Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) has
began an indefinite nationwide strike over non implementation of the  Consolidated
Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) to medical and Health Workers.

In a statement
issued by the Union’s representative Comrade Ibe Nwokenta, the workers stated
that the national secretariat of the Union had directed members of the Union
nationwide to embark on indefinite strike pending madiness of the federal and
state governments to implement the proper salary structure for the Union
members.

The statement said that the union’s national leadership’s
meeting with the Honourable Minister of Health, Prof Onyebuchi Chukwu yielded
no positive result, alleging that some people do not want the government to pay
the union members the consolidated salary structure.

He said that “some people want CONHESS to be skipped and we
will not allow that,” stressing that the union’s agitation for payment of the
new salary structure started four years ago.

Comrade Nwokenta said it was regrettable that those who
wanted to truncate the payment of the salary had benefitted from asimilar
salary structure in the past.

He said some members of the union would be allowed to
continue operations in some Federal Medical Centres and Hospitals due to the
promotion examination such members are currently going through, stressing that
activities at such Hospitals would be paralysed after September 30, even if the
promotion examination was postponed.

The Union leader warned that members of the union would not
return to work until the issue of CONHESS was resolved by the government with
the union leadership.

However, the union strike action had disrupted normal
activities at the

University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPHTH) and
other Federal Medical Centres.

Meanwhile, the National Industrial Court has directed the leadership
of the MHWUN to call off the strike action and order its members back to work.

The Court’s directive was given to the Union’s Acting
National Chairman, Comrade Fadeyo following the determination of the suit
before the court, at the instance of the Federal Government.