Petrol station workers under the aegis of the Concerned Petrol Station Workers have opposed plans by AA Rano to introduce what the company described as Nigeria’s first fully automated and unmanned fuel stations.

The workers warned that the move, if implemented without adequate safeguards, could worsen unemployment and contribute to rising insecurity across the country.

AA Rano recently announced plans to roll out the automated stations this January, noting that the outlets would operate a 24-hour self-service fuelling system.

According to the company, the stations will rely on contactless payment platforms, real-time monitoring technology, and automated dispensing systems, thereby eliminating the need for on-site pump attendants.

However, reacting to the announcement, the convener of the Concerned Petrol Station Workers and rights advocate, Comrade Ibrahim Zango, expressed strong reservations about the development.

In a statement issued in Kaduna on Thursday, Zango said many young Nigerians currently engaged as petrol station attendants could lose their means of livelihood.

He noted that the timing of the initiative was wrong, given the country’s prevailing economic challenges and rising unemployment rate.

“At a time when Nigeria is already grappling with mass unemployment, rising cost of living, and growing insecurity, deploying job-eliminating technology without safeguards is dangerous,” Zango said.

He urged stakeholders to consider the human cost of the innovation, stressing that thousands of families depend on earnings from petrol station jobs.

“So imagine the number of AA Rano fuel stations alone across the country and even beyond. Imagine the number of pump attendants working and earning their living from these stations,” he added.

Zango said many of the attendants had spent decades in the job and deserved better treatment than being displaced without a clear transition plan.

“To us, sending us out of the jobs some of us have been doing for decades without robust plans will only multiply our crisis as a country,” he stated.

The workers’ leader acknowledged the importance of technological advancement but insisted that innovation should not come at the expense of workers’ welfare.

According to him, automation in the downstream petroleum sector should be designed to create new opportunities rather than eliminate existing jobs.

Zango also called on the Federal Government and relevant regulatory agencies to urgently develop clear policies to balance technological innovation with labour protection.

He further appealed to AA Rano’s management to uphold its social responsibility, noting that many petrol station attendants today were once at the same starting point as the company’s chairman.

“They should not be pushed out of their livelihoods in the name of innovation,” Zango said, urging dialogue between the company, workers, and regulators before the project is implemented. (PUNCH)

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