The Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) and the Assembly of Healthcare Professional Associations (AHPA) have announced an indefinite nationwide strike, effective from midnight today, Friday, November 14. They have expressed their grievances towards the federal government, citing “long delay, inaction and outright disregard” regarding a twelve-year demand for the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS).
The announcement was made today at the Medical and Health Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MHWUN) National Secretariat in Abuja, following what the union characterized as a unanimous resolution from its Expanded National Executive Council, according to reports from The Nation.
JOHESU announced that all its affiliated unions, including MHWUN, the Nigeria Union of Allied Health Professionals (NUAHP), the Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutes, and Associated Institutions (SSAUTHRIAI), and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions in Nigeria (NASU), will cease services at all Federal Health Institutions starting at midnight on November 14, 2025.
It instructed employees across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory to “promptly issue their government’s 15-day notice in accordance with applicable provisions of the labour laws,” and assured state councils of comprehensive national support.
In a statement issued at the conclusion of the meeting and signed by the National Chairman of JOHESU, Comrade Kabiru Minjibri, the unions emphasized the importance of informing their members in health institutions nationwide, as well as the public, regarding the declaration of a Trade Dispute in the Health Sector. They also aimed to underscore the unresolved issues between the federal government and the unions.
The union reported that multiple correspondences have been dispatched to the pertinent ministries, departments, and agencies following the suspension of its previous strike on June 5, 2023, which it attributed to the personal intervention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
JOHESU indicated that following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the federal government on October 29, 2024, after a seven-day warning strike, “there has been no constructive response from the Federal Government regarding several of these issues despite assurances provided during subsequent meetings with relevant MDAs.”
The union characterized the present circumstances as “concerning and intolerable,” emphasizing that the lack of government action had resulted in no other options available to them.
The union highlighted that the central issue of the dispute continues to be the failure to implement the High-Level Body (HLB) Committee report regarding the adjusted CONHESS, which was presented to the Presidential Committee on Salaries and Wages in 2022.
JOHESU reports that this demand has been unresolved since January 2, 2014, when the government enacted a parallel adjustment for the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS), which they assert is in violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement that established the two salary structures in the health sector in 2009.
The statement expressed concern that “nothing has been done by successive administrations to address this infraction,” noting that even after President Tinubu met with a two-man JOHESU delegation in June 2023 and provided assurances, the demand remained unaddressed.
The unions indicated that MDAs had consistently attributed the delay to the lack of reconstitution of the Presidential Committee on Salaries. However, they emphasized that “following the reconstitution of the PCS, the issue did not receive the necessary priority until perhaps the last 48 hours, when the Federal Government seems to have taken tangible steps to address the significant delays that have persisted for nearly twelve years.”
JOHESU expressed concern for ordinary Nigerians who will be affected, stating, “This situation is beyond our immediate control due to government inaction.”
The unions asserted that they have consistently prioritized social dialogue and demonstrated maturity, selflessness, and patriotism, even amid significant provocations and prolonged government delays. However, they now feel that their maturity and patriotism have been overlooked.
The statement called on members to adhere strictly to the directive and cautioned that it “will not tolerate any victimization of its members by the Government or any employer within public health institutions nationwide due to this strike action, which is a matter of rights.”
JOHESU confirmed that all communication channels will remain accessible during the duration of the strike.
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