Health workers’ strike continues as JOHESU shuns talks with govt

• LUTH nurses, management fail to agree

Health workers under the aegis of the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) have refused to start fresh negotiations with the Federal Government even as they vowed to continue with their warning strike to embark on indefinite strike if the President Muhammad Buhari cabinet fails to implement the signed agreement the Union reached with the past administration.

The Guardian gathered that the management of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) Idi Araba has not sacked any resident doctor despite memo from the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), last week that all the striking resident doctors who were on strike should be sacked.

It was also gathered that unlike in some other institutions, most resident doctors in LUTH did not honour the strike action and were attending to patients as the industrial action was called off.

Also, talks between nurses at LUTH and the management have broken down as the former claims the latter failed to keep its promise.

The Guardian gathered that the management of LUTH failed to hold promotion interview for the nurses scheduled for Monday June 27, 2016, which was postponed indefinitely.

The nurses under the aegis of National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), LUTH Chapter, on the morning of June 10, 2016, unilaterally downed tools.

They are protesting against the non-promotion of 71 members of their association in the 2015 promotion exercise and non-payment of teaching allowance to nurses at LUTH, among other demands.

Meanwhile, all health workers in Federal Government hospitals on Wednesday last week embarked on a seven-day nationwide warning strike.

Medical and Health workers under the auspices of JOHESU and the Assembly of Health care Professionals (AHPA) had in a joint statement expressed displeasure over what they described as Federal government nonchalant attitude.

Chairman, JOHESU, Shaba Johnson Adetokunbo, explained that the leadership of JOHESU has met with the Ministry of Labour but the meeting ended in deadlock. He queried why government would continue to dishonour agreements it entered into with the union. “We have just started a seven days warning strike. The government wants a new negotiation. But we are saying that an agreement is an agreement. If you take over an organisation you will also be ready to take over the assets and liabilities.