The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) says it would mobilize its members to embark on an indefinite nationwide strike if the current price of petrol increases.
At a meeting of the African Trade Union Alliance on Monday in Abuja, Joe Ajaero, president of the NLC, gave a speech.
On Sunday, oil marketers made hints that if the naira keeps falling against the dollar, particularly at the parallel market, the price of gasoline at the pump would increase to over N700 per litre.
Currently, gasoline costs N617 per litre over most of the nation, and N577 in Lagos.
Organised labour had previously decried the increase in petrol prices, arguing that the federal government should protect employees from the loss of subsidies.
At the event, Ajaero said the Nigerian workers will not give any notice of strike if petrol price increases in the coming days.
“As we are here they are contemplating increasing the pump price of petroleum products and the federal ministry of labor and employment, for some time now, will only go to the federal ministry of justice to come up with injunctions to hold the hands of labor not to respond,” he said.
“Let me say this, Nigerian workers will not give any notice if we wake up from our sleep to hear that they have tempered with prices of petroleum products.
“They have started floating ideas of a likely increase in the pump price of petroleum products.”
Recall that, on July 26, NLC issued a seven-day ultimatum to the federal government to reverse all “anti-poor” and “insensitive” policies.
The policies, the union said, included the recent hike in the price of petrol, and the sudden increase in public school fees, among others.
However, the federal government said the unions were restrained by an order of the national industrial court from embarking on any industrial action regarding the removal of petrol subsidy.
The government also said the order prohibited the NLC and affiliates from holding protests across the country.
Despite the government’s stance, organized labor led its members to nationwide protests on August 2.
Consequently, the federal government initiated contempt proceedings against the unions for allegedly defying the order restraining them from embarking on industrial action.
The protest was later suspended on August 3 after leaders of the unions met with President Bola Tinubu at the presidential villa, in Abuja.
