Healthcare services in Katsina State face possible disruption as the Assembly of Healthcare Professionals has declared a seven-day warning strike over unresolved welfare and professional demands.
The industrial action was scheduled to begin at midnight on September 8, 2026, following the expiration of a 21-day ultimatum issued to the Katsina State Government without what the workers described as a meaningful commitment to address their grievances.
The assembly’s chairman, Comrade Ibrahim Balange, said the decision followed years of discussions and engagements with the government, which the union accused of failing to implement outstanding entitlements despite acknowledging the workers’ concerns.
The unions involved include the Medical and Health Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MHWUN), the National Association of Nigeria Nurses and Midwives (NANNM), the Association of Hospital and Administrative Pharmacists of Nigeria, and the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria.
Workers Demand Salary and Allowance Reviews
Among the major demands is the immediate implementation of 100 per cent of the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS), in line with the arrangement in federal health institutions.
The workers are also seeking the implementation of the skipping of CONHESS 10, as provided for in relevant circulars, and an upward review of the 10 per cent hazard allowance to bring it in line with federal standards.
Other demands include improved call-duty, shift-duty, clinical, non-clinical, rural and specialist allowances.
The unions are further demanding an increase in nurses’ uniform allowance to ₦80,000.
Balange said addressing the demands would improve workers’ welfare, boost morale and strengthen healthcare delivery across the state.
Union Threatens Indefinite Strike
The assembly warned that failure by the state government to resolve the issues before the end of the seven-day warning strike could lead to an indefinite industrial action.
It appealed to residents to understand the workers’ position, saying all amicable efforts to settle the dispute had been exhausted.
The planned action was expected to affect services in public health facilities across Katsina State, although medical doctors, who are not members of the assembly, were excluded from the strike.
The development raised concerns about access to healthcare, particularly as the state had also been grappling with a diphtheria outbreak. Reports in early September indicated suspected cases across 29 of Katsina’s 34 local government areas.
Note: The reports located concern the strike announced for September 8, 2026. They do not establish whether the industrial action has since ended or whether a new strike has been declared.