- The Joint Health Sector Unions says only the adjustment of CONHESS will end the ongoing nationwide strike
- The industrial action has entered its 82nd day, crippling public hospitals across Nigeria
- Labour leaders accuse the Federal Government of refusing to implement the technical committee’s report
Striking health workers under the Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) have reiterated that only an adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) will end their prolonged industrial action, as talks with the Federal Government remain stalled.
The strike, now in its 82nd day, has crippled operations in public hospitals nationwide, leaving many patients without access to care and forcing others to turn to private facilities for essential medical services.
JOHESU, which covers health professionals in pharmacy, laboratory science and other allied fields, insists that the Federal Government must implement the report of the Technical Committee on CONHESS adjustment, which was submitted in 2021.
The stalemate has also prompted the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to issue a 14-day ultimatum in solidarity with the striking workers. The deadline, which expires on Friday, February 6, 2026, warns that more affiliate unions could join the strike if the dispute is not resolved.
In a joint statement signed by TUC Secretary-General Nuhu Toro and acting NLC General Secretary Benson Upah, the labour centres accused the government of deliberately refusing to act on the salary review despite repeated engagements.
They rejected what they described as “the persistent and deliberate provocative refusal of the Federal Government to implement the report of the Technical Committee on the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure.”
According to them, the delay “is no longer an administrative lapse but a conscious act of injustice, bad faith and institutional disrespect to health workers and organised labour.
“It is, therefore, unacceptable and a blatant provocation that while the government had no difficulty implementing the adjustment of the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure with effect from January 2, 2014, the same government has wilfully refused to implement the same for CONHESS,” the statement added.
Speaking in Abuja, JOHESU National President Kabiru Minjibir said negotiations with the government had reached a standstill.
“Negotiations are still deadlocked, and the strike continues. NLC and TUC’s 14-day ultimatum to the government to resolve the issue or have other affiliate unions join in solidarity expires on Friday,” he said.
Minjibir maintained that the union’s position remains unchanged.
“We are on strike because of one single demand, which is CONHESS adjustment, as done for the sister scale, CONMESS, in 2014. So, if the government does the needful, we will surely suspend the strike,” he added.
When asked if the government had made any moves to reopen talks ahead of the ultimatum deadline, he replied, “We have yet to receive any invitation from the government.”
The prolonged shutdown is unfolding amid rising public health concerns, with Lassa fever cases increasing across the country. Figures from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control show that more than 90 infections and 17 deaths were recorded in the first three weeks of 2026, intensifying fears about the impact of disrupted services in government hospitals.
FG plans 10,000 housing units for healthcare workers under Renewed Hope initiative
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that the Federal Government had announced plans to build 10,000 housing units under the Renewed Hope Medic Cities initiative, aimed at providing affordable and decent housing for medical professionals across the country.
The initiative, spearheaded by the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in partnership with the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), the Ministry of Health, and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), was revealed during a meeting with the Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) in Abuja on Thursday, January 23, 2025.