…..AS HEALTH WORKERS REJECT DEMOTION, STAGNATION AND IMPOVERISHMENT OF STAFF UNDER THE DISGUISE OF RE-DESIGNATION
There is palpable tension at Federal Medical Centre, Owo in Ondo State as
Health workers threatened a showdown with the management of the hospital over an alleged implementation of policies that are targeted at demoting, stagnating and reducing the salaries of health workers in the centre.
A relative of a patient at the centre who was approaching the Male Medical Ward of the hospital had heard a loudly chorused songs of solidarity from the hospitals’ auditorium yesterday 13th of March 2024 and decided to witness the cause of such voice of unison.
The source told our reporter that “Upon entering the hall, the patient relative confirmed that the health workers unanimously rejected the implementation of a new policy of the hospital management termed “re-designation”. The policy is meant to be implemented along with the 2024 promotion examination in the hospital.”
A further investigation of the matter by our correspondent revealed that the policy will demote HND holders from CONHESS 13 to CONHESS 11, particularly for those that have additional BSc qualifications.
The source said, “the implication is that category of workers affected will loose about 75% of the current salary being earned by them. And these are mainly workers that are from Owo and environs that attended Rufus Giwa Polytechnic Owo(RUGIPO). Is it a crime to attend polytechnics in Nigeria? Other category of staff that will be affected are to be demoted from CONHESS 15/9 to CONHESS 14/7 thereby loosing almost 35% of the currently earned salary. Other categories of workers are meant to be stagnated till further notice despite being due for promotion this year.
A member of staff of the hospital, who prefered to be anonymous, expressed with sadness, the unwarranted mission of the hospital management to make essential workers like health workers to become more poor in the face of serious economic hardship occasioned by the withdrawal of fuel subsidy and global inflation.
She posited that “His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been magnanimous in ameliorating the sufferings of health workers by introducing wage award and peculiar salaries. This payments have not even been implemented fully, yet, the management of our centre wants health workers to die of hunger and sickness due to inability to afford nutrient rich food and buy drugs for even disease and infections that are being contacted while rendering health services.”
“As I speak with you, many health workers are down with LASSA fever and another one died of LASSA just two(2) weeks ago” . Obviously, the management care less about our wellbeing by planning to implement this dangerous policy. Why now? When we cannot even afford to go to work with our cars and members have continued to have motorcycle accidents because going to work on motorcycle is cheaper. The management is very insensitive and only God will judge them, says the angry health worker.
The workers’ congress, which comprises of all health workers apart from medical doctors rejected in totality the re-designation citing discrepancies in the implementation and the negative adverse effect of such implementation on innocent health workers.
Another worker the spoke with our correspondence informed that Medical Doctors are always allowed to reach the peak of their careers but other health workers are always stagnated and demoted just to massage the ego of medical doctors.
“The Medical Director and his second in command are also medical doctors and have continued to do the bid of their colleagues. It’s very shameful, nepotistic and an act of wickedness.”
It was also gathered that the health workers have told the management to postpone the promotion exercise until issue of re-designation of health workers is resolved without exposing health care workers to avoidable depression, suicide and untimely death due to financial incapacity and incapabilities that may be occasioned by the policy implementation.
“They also begged the President, His Excellency, Sen Bola Ahmed Tinubu to call the management of FMC, Owo, Ondo state to order and direct the MD to put his anti-workers policy to a halt as the policy cannot add any value to neither the management of FMC, Owo nor the Nigerian government.
“It will only paint the Tinubu led government in bad light more, even when the sensitive President is innocent of the ugly trend and has continued to support all Nigerian in this situation.”
The Chief Medical Director of the Hospital, could not be reached as at the time of filing in this report.
