The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has condemned Vice President Kashim Shettima’s comments on the ongoing dispute between the Dangote Refinery and members of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).

In a statement issued on Tuesday to mark the World Day for Decent Work, NLC President Joe Ajaero said the Vice President’s remarks appeared to favour the refinery at the expense of Nigerian workers’ welfare.

“The serial violations of the ideals of decent work are a ticking time bomb. The NLC, in alliance with the working people of Nigeria, remains the vanguard of resistance against capitalist exploitation and the capture of governance institutions. We will not surrender the rights of Nigerian workers on the altar of profit. We insist: there are no sacred cows,” Ajaero declared.

The labour body accused the “ruling elites” of perpetuating exploitation and warned that continued disregard for workers’ rights would deepen poverty and social unrest.

According to the NLC, the Decent Work Agenda, championed by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), rests on four pillars — job creation, social protection, rights at work, and social dialogue — all of which are being undermined in Nigeria.

“A nation that fails to guarantee fair incomes, safe workplaces, and the right to organise is a nation that sabotages its own productive capacity,” the statement read.

The Congress described Vice President Shettima’s alleged defence of Dangote Refinery as a “national tragedy” and an endorsement of impunity.

“We condemn in the strongest terms the statement by Vice President Kashim Shettima that the Dangote Group is a ‘national asset’ and therefore should be exempt from obeying labour laws. This is an affront to the rule of law and a declaration that money is sovereign,” the NLC said.

The union accused the Dangote Group of “brazenly violating” workers’ rights to unionise, calling it a “national tragedy” rather than a national asset.

It also criticised the government for allegedly siding with the refinery against workers, warning that such bias amounts to “a declaration of war on Nigeria’s long-suffering citizens.”

“By encouraging this lawlessness, government is promoting disdain for national institutions and emboldening forces of impunity that hold our nation captive,” the NLC stated.

The organisation called for immediate enforcement of industrial relations laws, including the recognition of unions in all workplaces, and urged the government to end the “sacred cow syndrome.”

“No company, no matter how big, strategic, or well-connected, can operate above the law,” it warned. “The State’s duty is to protect the weak and vulnerable, not offer them as sacrifices to greedy capitalists.”

Ajaero further urged the strengthening of labour administration institutions to ensure full compliance with labour laws and to curb impunity in workplaces across the country.