Port Harcourt Refinery Workers Protest Unpaid Salaries

Support staff at the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) are owed seven months of unpaid salaries, leading to protests and demands for intervention from President Bola Tinubu. Security contractors are owed eight months, while cleaners have not been paid for nine months.

Energy expert Dr. Joseph Obele condemned the situation, calling it unfair and unacceptable, and urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Federal Government to resolve the crisis. He noted that support staff earn about N156,000 monthly, which is inadequate given living costs.

Obele questioned why permanent employees receive their salaries while support staff remain unpaid. He emphasized that workers should not suffer due to the refinery's operational challenges and called for a meeting to address the salary arrears.

Another expert, Rasheed Adeleke, pointed out that the salary dispute reflects deeper issues in Nigeria's refinery management, questioning the resources spent on maintaining underperforming facilities.