The National Association of Resident Doctors planned five-day warning strike has been advised to be abandoned by the Federal Government, which referred to it as unlawful.
Chris Ngige, the minister of labour and employment, issued the warning today not long after receiving a letter from a NARD official informing him of the upcoming strike, which is scheduled to begin at midnight on this day, May 16, 2023.
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Ngige responded to the letter, which was dated May 16, 2023 and sent to his office about 5 p.m. on the same day, saying that after receiving it, he contacted the Minister of Health, who told him that his office had organised a meeting with the resident doctors for the following day, May 17, 2023.
Therefore, rather than going on a warning strike, which is illegal, he recommended the doctors to take advantage of the chance for social discourse with their employer.
He said;
I will advise them to attend the meeting with the Minister of Health tomorrow. I will also advise them very strongly not to go on five-day warning strike. There is nothing like warning strike. A strike is a strike.
If they want to take that risk, the options are there. It is their decision. They have the right to strike. You cannot deny them that right. But their employer has another right under Section 43 of the Trade Dispute Act, to withhold their pay for those five days.
So, if the NARD has strike funds to pay their members for those five days, no problem. The Health Minister will instruct the teaching hospitals to employ adhoc people for those five days and they will use the money of the people who went on strike to pay the adhoc doctors. That is the ILO principles at decent work, especially for those rendering essential services. Lives should be protected. One of my sons is a resident doctor. I will advise him to go to work and sign the attendance register. The people seen at work are the ones to receive their pay. If you don’t work, there will be no pay.
