Dangote Refinery Shifts Dismissed Staff to Northern States Amid Union Standoff

The management of the Dangote Refinery has reassigned dozens of engineers and other technical workers, who were let go last month over alleged involvement in a work stoppage, to remote sites in several northern states, including Borno, Zamfara, and others, as a way to ease tensions with the affected employees and their union representatives.

The transfers, announced on Wednesday, affect around 80 staff members from the original group of about 100 who lost their jobs after joining a brief nationwide shutdown organised by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria. The refinery’s leaders described the move as a practical solution to keep the workers employed while addressing operational needs in less stable regions, where security challenges have left key facilities short-handed.

Union officials welcomed the development as a positive step towards mending fences, though they made it clear that full reinstatement at the main Lagos site remains the ultimate goal. The sacked employees, mostly skilled in maintenance and engineering roles, had been accused of disrupting daily activities during the action, which the refinery viewed as a breach of company policy. However, after mediation from government officials, the firm agreed to explore redeployment options rather than outright terminations.

Spokespeople for the refinery explained that the northern postings align with broader expansion plans, including upgrades to fuel depots and pipeline networks in areas hit hard by unrest. These locations offer similar pay scales and benefits, with added allowances for hardship conditions, but the distance from home bases has sparked mixed reactions among the workers. Some see it as a fair compromise, while others worry about family separations and safety risks in volatile zones.

The union’s national secretary described the redeployments as a “temporary bridge” that buys time for deeper talks, but warned that unresolved issues like back pay and job security could reignite disputes. The brief shutdown earlier this month had raised fears of fuel shortages and power dips across the country, but quick interventions prevented widespread fallout. Both sides now pledge to continue negotiations under the watchful eye of labour regulators, aiming to avoid further interruptions to the refinery’s output, which has helped stabilise local fuel prices.

This resolution comes as the refinery ramps up production, processing thousands of barrels daily and supplying stations with cheaper petrol and diesel. Industry watchers hope the compromise will set a precedent for handling labour rows in the energy sector, where rapid growth often clashes with worker demands for fair treatment.