Salary Cuts: Lagos Doctors Embark on Three-Day Warning Strike

Due to what they say are unfair salary deductions, medical professionals working for the Lagos State Government have announced a three-day warning strike that will start at 8 a.m. today (Monday, July 28).
The Medical Guild of Lagos State reportedly announced the news at a press conference at their secretariat, when their chairman, Dr. Japhet Olugbogi, denounced what he called a “unilateral deduction” from physicians’ pay.
The conflict, according to Olugbogi, started in April 2025 when the Lagos State Government allegedly withheld money from the wages of all dentists and doctors without their consent or previous warning.

He said that the action caused a great deal of outrage and that it was first undone following “spirited intervention and strategic engagement” with the government.

Following this interaction, a six-member conciliation committee was established, with equal representation from the Guild and the government.

The status quo will be preserved while the government conducted internal deliberations, according to Olugbogi, who added that “we presented all relevant documents clarifying the calculation of the CONMESS salary scale.”

The doctors stated that if their requests are not fulfilled, the walkout will continue until Thursday, July 31.

But in July, the Lagos State Treasury Office started deductions, which the Guild chairman bemoaned as a “breach of trust” in spite of the agreements reached.

He said that although many members had at first called for an urgent strike, the Guild decided to pursue lobbying and diplomacy instead.

The July deduction has compelled us to follow this course of action. According to Olugbogi, this is a betrayal as well as a breach of contract.

The doctors’ demands reportedly include paying the honorary consultants at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) the full amount of the 12-month amended CONMESS arrears.

The state administration was also given a 21-day ultimatum by the Guild, which threatened to go on full-scale indefinite strike if its demands were not met.

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Olugbogi disclosed the financial difficulties that physicians encounter, saying, “Let it be known that the most senior doctor in Lagos State employment does not earn up to $1,100.”

“However, in its wisdom, the government believes that the best way to inspire the health workforce is to cut this pitiful income.”

He urged Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to act quickly to reverse what the Guild referred to as “illegally deducted funds.”