Workers at Qua Iboe Terminal blocked an access road to the oil facility Tuesday to protest low wages among other substandard conditions.
Workers at Qua Iboe Terminal blocked an access road to the oil facility Tuesday to protest low wages among other substandard conditions.
The Facility is operated by Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPN), the Nigerian unit of US energy firm ExxonMobil.
The workers, who carried placards and sang solidarity songs, blocked the Eket-Ibeno road by 5 am and denied access to oil workers and their security escort.
The junior workers carried placards citing their low monthly wage package of between N18, 000 and N22, 000, calling it unrealistic under the prevailing economic conditions in Nigeria.
Mr Joseph Okon, Coordinator of Janitorial Staff in Mobil locations in Eket and Ibeno said that they were compelled by several years of neglect to embark on the peaceful protest.
“We have endured these conditions for several years and have worked in deplorable conditions within the oil industry where workers are supposed to be comfortable.
A combined team of Police, Army and Naval personnel , drafted to secure oil installations in the area, appealed to the protesting workers and pledged to convene a meeting between the workers and the management of MPN.
It was gathered that the protesting workers lifted the blockade when a representative of Mobil management at the Qua Iboe Terminal agreed to dialogue with them.
Sources at the Qua Iboe oil field confirmed that the oil firm earlier fixed a meeting for Tuesday afternoon but later shifted the meeting to Thursday to enable the labor contractors that hired the workers to participate in the talks.
“We earn a paltry sum ranging from N18,000 to N22,000 depending on the labor contractor,” said Okon, “and we are often owed for months, there is no condition of service and we are hired and fired without recourse to the labor guidelines.
He continued: “All attempts to get the attention of the Management have been rebuffed as several letters on our plight have been ignored so we had no option than to take this option to draw attention to our plight.
“The labor law forbids casual labor beyond five years but what they do is to use different contractors to recycle us and some of us have spent 15 years and above,” Okon said.
He said that the workers were looking forward to a review of their wages and the formulation of a standardised condition of service to guide all parties in the meeting scheduled for Thursday.
Officials of Mobil at the Oil terminal declined comments when contacted for reactions on the allegation by the Janitors.
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