NiMet Workers Down Tools Nationwide Over Unmet Welfare Demands
Operations at the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) have come to a grinding halt as employees across the country embarked on an indefinite strike over long-standing welfare grievances.
The industrial action, which began on Monday, is spearheaded by three major unions: the Union of Air Transport Employees (UATE), the Association of Nigeria Aviation Professionals (ANAP), and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical, and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE).
At the heart of the protest are allegations that NiMet has failed to honour agreements concerning financial allowances, including wage awards, peculiar allowances, and unresolved entitlements dating back to the 2019 minimum wage adjustments.
In a joint letter released by the unions, the workers expressed deep frustration over what they described as years of fruitless negotiations. “Our unions have strived strenuously over the past few years to alleviate the exceedingly unjust remunerations conundrum that has visited extreme poverty and consequent untold hardship on NiMet workers,” the letter stated. “These efforts have been largely without substantial results.”
The unions also accused NiMet’s management of neglecting key staff welfare issues while prioritizing executive retreats, ignoring repeated calls to include omitted employees in past payments, and withholding critical documentation.
An agreement struck on January 28, 2025, was meant to partially address the workers’ concerns, but union leaders say the management failed to follow through on the terms. A 14-day ultimatum issued on January 22 came and went without resolution, prompting the workers to resume a previously suspended strike.
“With management’s inability to address our grave concerns and given the wide disparity in remunerations compared to our peers, we can no longer cope with the present hardship,” the statement continued. “We are left with no option but to withdraw all services indefinitely, effective April 22.”
NiMet had earlier appealed to the unions to postpone the strike following renewed dialogue, but that effort has now collapsed, signaling a major disruption in meteorological services across the country.
