Health workers under the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), Ekiti State Chapter, have raised alarm over alleged outstanding financial obligations owed workers at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital (EKSUTH), Ado-Ekiti, appealing to Governor Biodun Oyebanji to urgently intervene in the matter.
The Chairman of the Union in EKSUTH, Comrade Kumuyi Oluwatimilehin stated that several categories of payments and deductions, including 72-month arrears, COVID-19 allowances, special levies, cooperative deductions and union deductions, remained unresolved, despite repeated engagements with the management of the hospital.
She said the workers have been receiving half salaries for the past 72 months, accusing the management of the institution under the leadership of the Chief Medical Director, Professor Kayode Olabanji of failing to adequately address longstanding welfare and career progression issues affecting members of staff.
The unions said the situation had reached a critical point, warning that failure to resolve the outstanding issues could trigger a three-day protest by health workers, with the possibility of the industrial action being extended if their demands were not met.
Kumuyi acknowledged the efforts of the state government under Governor Biodun Oyebanji in improving funding for the health sector, particularly the increase in subventions to medical institutions, but said workers were yet to feel the full impact of such interventions.
Her words, “The Governor tried to increase our subvention three times within the space of two years. Kudos to him, but as you speak right now, what is breaking our hearts is that we have 72 months arrears for the past 8 years. For the past 10 years, we have been receiving half salary.
“Part of our deductions, our cooperative deductions that were supposed to be remitted to our different cooperatives were not remitted. Our special levies were not remitted to the appropriate quarter. Our union deductions is nowhere to be found. Our tax were deducted, but as it is today, we cannot even collect tax clearance because we will be sent back.
“So this very morning, we are demanding for our 72 months arrears. COVID-19 arrears is also there. Because we love our governor, we refuse to go on strike. Each time there is a strike, we say we love our governor, we love our governor, we are not going to remain at work. We are not going to go on strike.
“As I speak, members of Medical Health Union cannot access car loans, housing loans, we cannot access any loan, we don’t benefit anything from the government.
“During the time our governor is trying to campaign for his first time in office, he said that if not for cooperatives, there would be nothing like Governor BAO today And I stand to be corrected.
“All of us, we have our money, 72 months deduction, yet to be dedicated to our cooperatives. Our children have dropped out of school. We cannot send our children to school because the money we get was not emitted. It’s not going to be found”.
On his part, the Chairman of the Joint Negotiation Council (JNC) in Ekiti State, who also doubles as the State’s MHWUN Chairman, Comrade Femi Ajoloko, criticised the lack of transparency in the handling of the hospital’s finances and workers’ welfare.
Ajoloko alleged that the CMD had requested about N90 million in subvention but subsequently received more than N120 million, questioning why the additional funds could not be deployed, at least in part, to address outstanding workers’ entitlements.
The unions maintained that their grievances were not targeted at disrupting healthcare delivery but were aimed at securing improved welfare, payment of legitimate entitlements and better working conditions for employees who provide essential services to residents of the state.
They stressed that continued failure to resolve the issues could create avoidable tension within the hospital and negatively affect staff morale.
“It is quite unfortunate that the Chief Medical Director of this hospital is not being sincere. He’s not being fair with our people.
“If somebody is requesting for 90 million naira additional subventions and he’s given over 120 million naira, the excess you have is to defray the outstanding arrears of the workers.
“But to my dismay, I learned he’s busy employing local consultants and it’s very unfair of the CMD to go on air and said that he’s not owing anybody.
“I have an individual that has over 30 million naira, so who is who? Who is fooling who?”
In his reaction, the CMD insisted that the hospital management was not owing any worker, saying the controversy largely stemmed from the implementation of the new tax law and the adjustment of workers’ salaries.
Professor Olabanji explained that the management had implemented the new salary structure in line with the government-approved circular, which, according to him, was vetted by the unions, adding that the corresponding arrears released to the hospital had also been paid to the workers.
He said: “We have implemented that salary according to the circular given to us, vetted by the unions. So, we have implemented the new salary. We have paid the arrears, one month, according to what we were given.
“For the doctors, there is another award for those who are in training. For those who are in training, we have also paid that. Everything the government gave to us, we have disposed of to the workers.
“The Board of Internal Revenue wrote to us in January that we must implement the new tax law. We had to go to the Internal Revenue. We went to hold meetings with the representatives of these unions; we were there.
“There have been some deductions. But then they have been settled. They have been paid. As we are saying, if our allocation is not enough to pay this man’s salary, where are we going to have some huge money to clear arrears at once?
“So, they are being paid; they are being settled. But the immediate cause of this problem is that the tax is not favourable nd that is what they are contesting. That is all the problem.
“Everybody knew the tax they were not paying correctly before. The Board of Internal Revenue told us that if employers refuse to deduct the correct amount, there will be lawsuits and litigation.
“So, we are agents of government, and we have to follow what the tax law says. That is all”.
