Motorists, Commuters Stranded Over Protest By Shell Workers Along Broad Street, Lagos

Shell Petroleum workers embarked on a picketing of their office along Marina, Lagos Island, on Tuesday over what they called anti-worker activities by the management.

The workers under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) Shell Petroleum Branch, in-house, on March 3, 2026, staged the protest at the Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) office on Broad Street, Lagos.

The workers explained that the picketing was based on unresolved matters regarding the implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the in-house PENGASSAN and the management.

They also accused the management of unresolved issues regarding the status of Shell’s assets in Nigeria.

The workers accused SNEPCo management of practising modern-day slavery, discriminating against Nigerian staff in pay, and applying global pay policies without regard for local conditions.

The “Best-in-Basin” approach, they said, has led to poor pay and limited participation in key industry events.

The workers also raised concerns over inadequate allowances, citing car grants as insufficient in the current economy, and alleged that expatriates are increasingly occupying roles meant for Nigerian staff.

Moreover, they claimed that since SNEPCo has largely shifted its focus to Lagos through Shell Nigeria Gas and subsidiaries AllOn and Daystar, limiting broader operations, workers in the Lagos State office have been overworked without adequate compensation.

Staff members said the protest was prompted by management’s failure to address their concerns and called for government intervention to ensure accountability.

Surprisingly, in a chat with LEADERSHIP, the Head office of PENGASSAN was not aware of such protest.

According to the media team of PENGASSAN, “We are not aware of such a protest or picketing. We are hearing this from you for the first time. It is most likely the in-house team at Shell did it on their own.”

Efforts to get a reaction from PENGASSAN Lagos State Chairman, Comrade Eyam Abeng, were unsuccessful, as he did not pick up the call or respond to messages.