Health workers under the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) have said their strike will continue until the Federal Government reviews the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS).
Comrade Bertrand Ogbuani, Chairman of the Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRIAI) AE-FUTHA Branch, told journalists in Abakaliki on Wednesday that the strike was triggered by repeated government delays in implementing agreements dating back to 2012.
He said non-medical health workers under CONHESS have seen no pay review in 12 years, while doctors’ salaries under the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) have been revised three times since 2014. “It is like giving birth to twins and feeding only one,” Ogbuani said.
Comrade Silvanus Nwankwo, Chairman of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) AE-FUTHA, confirmed the strike is indefinite. He said repeated memoranda and negotiations had been ignored, leaving workers unable to support their families.
The unions dismissed fears of punitive action, including salary deductions, noting similar threats during the 2018 strike were later reversed.
They warned that the Federal Government must implement all outstanding agreements, pay owed wages, and revise CONHESS, or the strike will persist, further disrupting services in federal hospitals.
