Compulsory vigil: Sacked nurses take on hospital, management accuses victims of misconduct
UTHMAN SALAMI writes on the travails of two nurses who lost their jobs in a private hospital in Lagos for allegedly failing to attend a prayer vigil and sweep the hospital as directed by the management
When two registered nurses, Mrs Mercy Chekwubechi and Charity Ikonne, received a job offer from Davestar Hospital, they were overjoyed, anticipating a six-figure monthly salary. However, their excitement was short-lived, as one of the hospital’s supervisors informed them of an upcoming night vigil.
Believing it to be an invitation-only, they politely informed the supervisor that their shift at work would prevent them from attending.
However, things reared their ugly heads when they learnt that they were required to attend such a service as hospital staff members and that failure to do so could result in payment delays or the cancellation of off days entirely.
The stories of Chekwubechi and Ikonne were one of many gnashing experiences of some Nigerian nurses, while some of their employers, especially the medical doctors have been accused of treating them like maids who are only good for running errands. There have also been a few cases of nurses being reportedly abused by the patients they cared for.
Failure to attend vigil attracts delay in salary, cancellation of off-days
The community housing Davestar Hospital sits directly across the White House Event Centre bus stop, located along the Ijegun Road in the Isheri area of Lagos State. When this correspondent visited the area, a placard bearing an urgent vacancy for nurses was plastered on the community’s gate, leading to the hospital.
Chekwubechi, who joined Davestar Hospital on July 1, 2023, as a registered nurse, claimed Akinola sacked her after she complained about the compulsion to attend the programme. She said they were even mandated to undergo casual work such as sweeping and washing the hospital premises.
She said, “We were two nurses that resumed the same day. The two of us are registered nurses, not auxiliaries. I expected him to give me my offer letter immediately after assumption but he didn’t do so until I started asking him. He called me on the third day of assumption and handed the offer letter to me. On August 5, during a meeting with the management, the coordinator asked for the names of staff members who came for the vigil. The list of those who would not take part in cleaning the hospital compound was demanded. We didn’t understand what was going on until then.
“After the meeting, two new nurses and I went to the MD’s office. We told him that it would be difficult to attend vigils when we would resume the morning shift. We complained that he didn’t tell us we would be attending vigils during the time he was interviewing us for the job and reminded him that he told us it was not professional for registered nurses to be sweeping and cleaning the hospital premises. All this time, he already had copies of our licences.
“Later in September, I took permission that my husband who travelled out of town for two weeks would be returning that day and that I wouldn’t be able to attend the vigil. The MD accepted. However, on October 17, he went to my roaster and removed my off days because I failed to attend the previous night’s vigil, which I already took permission for. So, I sent him an email to understand why he would remove all my off days from the schedule. I told him it was not easy to do 10 hours for day duty and still return for an all-night vigil and the same person will still do 10 hours from the following morning.
“When I got to the office the following day for the night shift, his assistant told him that I had resumed work. He instructed the PA to tell me to go back home and that my services were no longer needed. I sent him a message that I got his message that he should pay my one-month full salary because he terminated my appointment. Since then, he never replied my message.
Reacting, Akinola, who dismissed the allegation, said, “Chekwubechi was sacked due to gross misconduct.
He said: “The hospital has been in operation for over 20 years, and I used to have a Muslim as the head of administration. I have never sacked anyone because he or she did not attend my vigil, and I have repeated several times that Chekwubechi was sacked due to gross misconduct, which I cannot condone….”
