Nurses and midwives at the Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital have issued a 15-day ultimatum to the hospital management over what they describe as sustained neglect of their welfare and poor working conditions.
The workers, who belong to the National Association of Nigerian Nurses and Midwives, LAUTECH chapter, accused the hospital management of sidelining them whenever new benefits are approved for health workers in the state.
The statement, jointly signed by the Unit Chairman, Ojewumi Olutayo, and Unit Secretary, Adedokun Foluwake, was released in Ibadan on Wednesday.
“Our demands include the immediate implementation of the new national minimum wage effective from January 2025, payment of promotion arrears from 2018 to 2024, recruitment of additional nurses to ease staff shortages, and renovation of nurses’ stations and rooms,” the statement said.
The nurses and midwives also complained about delayed payments of COVID-19 allowances and enhanced hazard allowances, saying these delays have worsened economic hardship and lowered staff morale.
“The situation has become unbearable,” the statement warned. “If the State Government does not intervene within the 15-day ultimatum, we will have no option than to embark on strike.”
The association stressed that a strike at LAUTECH, the only state-owned tertiary health institution and referral center serving Ogbomoso, Oyo, Iseyin, Okeho, Igbeti, Saki, Kisi, Otta, and neighbouring parts of Osun and Kwara States, would severely disrupt access to healthcare.
“The impact will be felt most by pregnant women, children, accident victims, and patients requiring emergency interventions,” the nurses said, appealing to Governor Seyi Makinde to personally intervene to end what they described as a cycle of exclusion that has demoralized frontline workers.
The ultimatum reflects broader challenges in Nigeria’s health sector, where disputes over wages, allowances, and poor working conditions continue to fuel labour unrest. While Oyo State has rolled out welfare packages for health workers, LAUTECH staff insist they have been repeatedly excluded.
