 have expressed frustration over the non-payment of salaries for the past six months, a situation they describe as unprecedented in the agency’s history.){kind=link}
Workers at the Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NiMet) have expressed frustration over the non-payment of salaries for the past six months, a situation they describe as unprecedented in the agency’s history.
Members of the seasonal climate prediction team have particularly been affected, with some employees revealing their dire financial situation.
Speaking exclusively to The PUNCH, aggrieved staff blamed the agency’s Director-General/CEO, Prof. Charles Anosike, for their continued hardships, claiming that the management’s neglect has left workers in a state of impoverishment.
A source, speaking anonymously to avoid retaliation, warned that the situation could pose significant risks, especially for Nigeria’s aviation sector.
The workers, already dealing with challenging working conditions, have now had to contend with the added burden of unpaid salaries.
As a result, unions representing the staff have issued a warning to NiMet management, threatening to revive a strike that had been previously suspended due to unfulfilled promises in their January agreement with the agency.
The central grievance from the unions is the management’s failure to implement key provisions of the agreement, particularly in relation to workers’ allowances, which were to be negotiated and finalized before February 2025.
In a letter, the unions raised concerns about the withholding of the negotiated conditions of service document.
Although the document had reportedly been sent to the ministry, it has not been shared with the union representatives who had signed it.
The Union of Air Transport Employees, the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals, and the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporations, Civil Service Technical, and Recreational Services Employees all criticized NiMet management for failing to honor the terms of the agreement made on January 28, 2025.
Workers further accused the agency of allowing consultants to run operations, even though regular staff members are still present.
They believed this is an effort to misappropriate the agency’s funds.
“Things are getting worse at NiMet,” one worker revealed.
“The SCP technical team hasn’t been paid for over six months. Consultants are now handling everything, just to siphon money from the agency. Anosike’s management is the worst we’ve ever had. People are sent on assignments without DTA, and we’ve already lost two staff members in a road accident. We are being deprived, and morale is at an all-time low.”
In response to the allegations, Nasiru Sani, NiMet’s Director of Human Resource Management and Administration, dismissed the claims, insisting that the management had been actively addressing the issues raised in the January agreement.
He stated that many of the concerns raised required the involvement of other government agencies, with whom NiMet had been in communication.
“It is unfair to say that the management has not made progress on the issues agreed upon in January,” Sani said.
“Many of the matters raised require approvals from other government agencies, and we’ve been working with them to address these concerns.”
He assured that the agency had secured the approval of Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, to increase debt recovery from key aviation authorities, including the Nigeria Air Management Authority, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, to help meet the workers’ demands.