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By Iheanyi Chukwudi
Workers in the public health institutions in Enugu, including University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) and Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital Enugu (FNHE), have joined the seven days nationwide warning strike of the health workers.
Consequently, services at various government hospitals have been skeletal since Monday, when the Joint Health Sector Unions and Assembly of Healthcare Professionals' action started.
When our reporter visited UNTH, Ituku-Ozalla and FNHE, Enugu on Tuesday, only the doctors and nurses were seen attending to patients in the ward.
Out-patients and visitors to the hospitals could not get attention because staff that were supposed to attend to them at the records, accounts etc were affected by the strike forcing the sick among them to visit private hospitals.
Declaring the seven days warning strike at UNTH Ituku/OZalla Enugu, the Branch secretary, Comrade Amaka Okonkwo and union leaders said that government had failed the workers and had shown insensitivity to the plights of the workers over the times.
They said that one of the issues in contention is the implementation of JOHESU CONHESS adjustment.
JOHESU is made up of the Medical and Health Workers Union of Nigeria, the Nigerian Union of Allied Health Professionals, the Senior Staff Association of Universities, Teaching Hospitals, Research Institutions, and Associated Institutions, and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions.
The warning strike is to press home the union's demands, which include, the adjustment of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure as was done with the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure since January 2, 2014; the implementation of a consultant cadre for pharmacists in Federal Health Institutions; the upward review in the retirement age from 60 to 65 years for health workers and 70 years for consultants, and the payment of JOHESU members in professional regulatory councils.
Others are the payment of arrears of CONHESS review, the tax waiver on healthcare workers’ allowances, the immediate payment of COVID-19 inducement hazard allowances to omitted health workers, the immediate suspension of planned establishment and activities of National Health Facility Regulatory Agency, and the withdrawal of the Drug Revolving Fund Standard Operating Procedures.
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