… Rejects 2014 MoU, Demands CONHESS Adjustment
LAGOS – The Joint Health Sector Unions (JOHESU) has criticised the National Association of Medical and Dental Academics (NAMDA) and the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), alleging that their recent statements on salary relativity in Nigeria’s health sector contain misinformation and distortions.
Declares War On ‘Physician Hegemony’
In a strongly worded statement issued on Tuesday, signed by JOHESU Chairman, Comrade Kabiru Ado Minjibir, and National Secretary, Comrade Martin Egbanubi, the union warned that attempts to derail parity under the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS) amounted to discrimination and a direct affront to Nigeria’s Constitution.
The statement came in response to recent press releases by NAMDA and NMA, which criticised the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) for issuing a 14-day ultimatum to the Federal Ministry of Health without consulting physician associations.
Labour Centres Under Fire JOHESU dismissed NAMDA’s claim that labour centres acted improperly by speaking on behalf of health workers without consultation. The union described NAMDA as “one of the two approved Associations” recognised by the Ministry of Labour in 2023, but accused it of “perfecting the art of propagating a recurrent sadistic agenda” long associated with “appendages of the physician tribe.”
Reacting to NAMDA’s and NMA’s assertion, JOHESU said, “This argument reflects a palpable but regrettable arrogance of ignorance that physicians continue to display in relationship structuring in this clime.”
The union accused physicians of enjoying protection not only from their “godfathers” but also from “instruments of the state, which they have deployed maximally to protect their oppressive, suppressive and aggressive hegemony.”
JOHESU argued that NAMDA and NMA were advancing a hierarchical philosophy that assumes physicians are “untouchables” in the health system, insisting that such posturing explains why NAMDA demands deference from labour centres.
Constitutionality And Salary Structures
The union rejected NAMDA’s argument that CONHESS beneficiaries are neither physicians nor dentists and therefore should not demand improved salary scales. According to JOHESU, this position “is an affront to the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which prohibits discrimination against citizens of Nigeria.”
On the contentious 2014 salary adjustment, JOHESU disputed NAMDA’s and NMA’s reliance on what they called a collective bargaining agreement. “For too long physicians have sold the dummy that the adjustment of CONMESS in 2014 was based on a purported CBA under the auspices of the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation,” the union declared.
“Our investigation reveals that the NMA actually signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Federal Government in 2014,” JOHESU added, stressing that the Trade Union Act is clear: unions can only negotiate welfare packages for their members. The 2014 MoU, it argued, “does not have a binding effect on members of JOHESU.”
The union insisted that a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) supersedes a memorandum of understanding, and therefore the 2014 MoU cannot be used to justify physician salary adjustments.
Relativity And Entry Points
JOHESU further claimed that existing CONHESS and CONMESS structures, including a relativity circular issued in July 2025, were “inclined on the 2014 MoU between the FG and NMA,” rendering them illegitimate due to “established procedural deficiency.”
By contrast, JOHESU said its position is anchored on the 2009 CBA between JOHESU and the Federal Government, which “recognises parity as the benchmark in the modulation of salaries and allowances for its membership.”
The union dismissed references by physicians to colonial‑era salary differentials as “escapism,” arguing that the health sector has evolved significantly over the last four decades. “Apart from pharmacists and physicians who were exclusively the only core health professional graduates up to 40 years ago, the health sector has now opened up with a full range of health workers who are graduates with relevant best practice exposure,” JOHESU said.
On entry points and grading, JOHESU maintained that relativity is already built into the public service structure. “A medical officer enters the federal public service on Grade Level 13, while other health professionals, who hitherto entered on Grade Level 09 like physicians, now come in at best on Grade Level 10. That three‑level gap at entry alone settles the argument.”
The union added that while it takes non‑physician health professionals a minimum of 10 to 16 years to reach Grade Level 13, a fresh medical graduate enters on that level immediately. JOHESU also criticised the July 2025 circular by the Ministry of Health, which it said introduced “a relativity within existing relativity” by imposing new ratios ranging from 1:1.1 at Grade Level 13 to 1:1.5 at Grade Level 17, still in favour of physicians.
“In other words, the health worker that spends 10 or 16 years before hitting GL 13 will still be subordinate to a fresh post‑NYSC physician who enters on GL 13 with a superior ratio advantage,” the union said.
Monetary Gaps And “Cheap Blackmail”
JOHESU argued that the gap between the Consolidated Medical Salary Structure (CONMESS) and CONHESS remains wide. “The CONMESS salary scale is fundamentally and substantially higher than CONHESS. They are not parallel scales; they are not remotely equal,” the union said. “Yet, despite this clear advantage, the public is being misled with claims of imbalance.”
To buttress its claim, JOHESU said a non-physician director earns roughly the same as a CONMESS 4 doctor after about six years in service, while a chief consultant earns about 135 per cent of a Grade Level 17 officer. “These figures alone expose the exaggeration and deliberate distortion being pushed in the public space,” it added.
The union also said the dispute was nearing resolution late last year. It noted that key issues had been substantially agreed and that a letter had been written to the Budget Office to work out implementation modalities.
Against the backdrop of the ongoing JOHESU strike and the NLC/ TUC ultimatum, the union vowed to “lead the way with trusted partners to redress years of monumental injustice.”
“This cheap blackmail must be confronted directly. We have had enough of the noise,” the statement thundered. “We challenge NAMDA or NMA to bring the tables and figures out before we do it for them. Let Nigerians see the truth for themselves.”
JOHESU added that series of circulars on CONMESS adjustments are already in the public domain and vowed to help expose what it called “tyrannical service and remuneration models” in the sector.
The union urged the Federal Government and the public to note that NAMDA and NMA admitted that the 2014 CONMESS adjustment was selective.
The statement fully reads, “What makes the current narrative even more dishonest is that this matter was already nearing closure in December 2025. The key issues had been substantially agreed upon, and an official letter was written to the Budget Office to work out modalities for implementation. To now act as if the matter is unresolved or freshly contentious is a clear attempt to rewrite history.
“In the context of the ongoing JOHESU strike, the NLC/TUC ultimatum, and the response from the Nigerian Association of Academic Medical Practitioners, JOHESU leadership undertakes to lead the way with trusted partners to redress years of monumental injustice. The facts are local, verifiable, and on record. Entry points are clear. Salary scales are clear. Relativity is already entrenched.
“This cheap blackmail must be confronted directly. We have had enough of the noise. We challenge NAMDA to bring the tables and figures out before we do it for them. Let Nigerians see the truth for themselves.
“The series of circulars of CONMESS adjustment are available in public domain. JOHESU will help the FMOH and physicians to advertise the tyranical service and remuneration models which the facts bear.
“Finally, we urge the Federal Government and the public to note that the NAMDA admitted succinctly in its writeup that there was a selected adjustment of CONMESS in 2014 to correct distortion of relativity.
“In the light of the fact that we have graphically showed existing relativity at entry point and that a CBA supersedes an MoU, JOHESU strongly demands again that the Federal Government through the FMoH immediately facilitates the adjustment of CONHESS as a first-line redress of the years of the holocaust we suffer in the work environment,” the statement concluded.
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