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By Henry Uche
Following the Federal Government’s move to improve the hazard allowances of N5,000.00 hitherto paid to all health workers, irrespective of their ranks and professional callings since 2009, the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of Healthcare Professional Associations (JOHESU/AHPA) have called on government, through the Federal Ministry of Health to expedite actions and make the new directive actionable for workers under Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS).
In a statement delivered by acting national secretary of JOHESU, Matthew Ajurotu, the group said payment of hazard allowance to health workers in Nigeria should not only be fair and just but also equitable.
According to them, it is imperative that the Federal Government shows more understanding for the gargantuan sacrifices of JOHESU/APHA, which heeded the calls of President Muhammadu Buhari to put on hold any planned strike, as its demands would be met through expedited action plans initiated by government.
“JOHESU/AHPA believes it was impossible for government at all levels to pay commensurate hazard allowances to all cadres of health workers, given the lean economy the Federal Government continues to project.
“In all circumstances, our minimum benchmark and demand remains that as originally proposed by the FMOH through the minister of state for health, Olorunnimbe Mamora, all health workers would earn the same hazard allowances based on their categorization as junior and senior staff. This was the basis of the FG’s original proposal of N12,500 and N25,000 to junior and senior cadres in the health sector.”
They maintained that their members were short-changed as their philosophy for equity and equality, which were the watchwords in the payment of hazard allowances for over 12 years, were negated in the computation of the final figure reflected by the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission circular released recently.
JOHESU/APHA, therefore, called on government to immediately remedy the lapses since nothing had changed in the condition precedent to the employment of the various cadres of health workers in the last 12 years to warrant discrimination in the payment of hazard allowances.
“JOHESU/APHA had given the Federal Government a leeway to apply appropriate inducement allowances during specific health emergencies, epidemics and pandemics to take cognisance of the duration of training, skills acquisition and other variants of expertise as it affects health workers so as to duly compensate those truly deserving as it arises, so there was no need to truncate the basic and common denominator employed in structuring a new hazard allowance.
“We strongly protest the divisive and discriminatory lexicons of clinical and non-clinical staff which was introduced in the new NSIWC circular because none of the staff members who are on the CONHESS AND CONMESS structures was designed as clinical and non-clinical in their original employment terms.
“We hasten to remind the FG again that the 1999 federal constitution prohibits discrimination against citizens of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which leaves us with no choice than to insist on maintenance of the credible status-quo which places premium on all stakeholders on the two salary scales as veritable health workers in Nigeria. Anything apart from this leaves us with no other choice than to believe the FG is coming up with some ulterior motives in foreseeable future.”
They averred that it was high time their demands were activated which is in the throes of a trade dispute particularly by adjusting CONHESS as was done with CONMESS since Jan 2, 2014, in 2017, and in 2019. Thus the entire value chain of CONHESS must be adjusted like was done with the CONMESS with the exception of only one grade level that was not adjusted.
“These are the irreducible minimum benchmarks that the FG must finally activate as we march towards 2022. JOHESU/APHA looks forward to a faster and holistic implementation of all outstanding demands from Government in the days ahead,” they added.
