The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare has moved to resolve the lingering industrial dispute at the Federal University of Technology Akure Teaching Hospital (FUTATH), inviting the leadership of Organised labour in Ondo to a high-level meeting aimed at restoring industrial peace and ensuring uninterrupted healthcare services.
The intervention follows the recent seven-day ultimatum issued by organised labour over alleged violations of workers’ rights and breaches of the transition agreement after the former University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital (UNIMEDTH), Akure, was taken over by the Federal Government.
In a letter signed on behalf of the Permanent Secretary by the Deputy Director, Reform Coordination and Service Delivery (RLDO), Mr. Festus Igbinosun, informed the State Chairman of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) in Ondo state, that a delegation from Abuja would visit the hospital on Friday to engage stakeholders on the issues responsible for the recurring industrial actions.
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According to the ministry, the meeting, scheduled to hold in the boardroom of the teaching hospital, followed a report submitted by the hospital’s management on the persistent disruption of services and other operational challenges.
The letter explained that the engagement would provide a platform for constructive dialogue among all parties with a view to finding lasting solutions.
The ministry explained that the intervention came on the heels of the successful completion of the Federal Government’s transition programme through which the former UNIMED Teaching Hospital formally became the Federal University of Technology Akure Teaching Hospital.
It stated that the transition process was concluded with the biometric capture of all eligible workers selected into the approved nominal roll, describing the exercise as the final stage in implementing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Ondo State Government and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare on October 23, 2025.
The ministry noted that the staff absorption exercise was carried out strictly in line with the provisions of the MoU, which limited absorption into the Federal Civil Service to eligible officers of the former state-owned hospital.
It recalled that a comprehensive verification exercise was conducted from December 8 to 12, 2025, by an inter-ministerial committee comprising officials of the Federal Ministries of Health and Finance, the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
According to the ministry, the list of eligible officers was further scrutinised using established public service guidelines, including age requirements, qualifications, previous service records, the approved organisational structure for federal teaching hospitals and the prescribed clinical-to-non-clinical staff ratio.
It disclosed that 265 workers of the former hospital were found ineligible for absorption into the Federal Civil Service and had been recommended to the Ondo State Government for redeployment into the state civil service.
The ministry added that biometric capture for enrolment into the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) was conducted in Akure between June 8 and 13, 2026, while a mop-up exercise was later held in Abuja from July 9 to 13 for workers who were unable to participate in the initial exercise.
The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, commended the Ondo State Government and residents of the state for their cooperation throughout the transition, describing the successful takeover as a product of mutual understanding and collaboration.
The ministry expressed optimism that Friday’s engagement with organised labour would lead to an amicable resolution of the outstanding issues, restore industrial harmony and enable the hospital to concentrate on its core mandate of quality healthcare delivery, teaching and research.
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