Global pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has officially shut down its commercial operations in Nigeria, rendering its commercial employees redundant, West Africa Weekly reported.
Documents indicate that affected employees have received formal redundancy notifications, marking a significant restructuring of Pfizer’s business presence in the country. While the company is proceeding with layoffs, details of severance packages remain unresolved.
An email dated January 13, signed by Olubukola Oparinde, Manager of People Experience, SSA Biopharma, acknowledged employee concerns about the shutdown and assured that further feedback from leadership would follow. Employees were issued redundancy notification letters, which they were required to acknowledge, confirming that they had been informed of their job losses.
Further correspondence on January 15 instructed affected staff to sign off on the notifications, clarifying that these were not final redundancy agreements. The company also indicated that severance details were still subject to additional approvals.
A follow-up email on February 12 to an employee included severance computation details, suggesting that discussions over employee compensation were ongoing.
Following the shutdown, affected employees are entitled to severance packages, including redundancy benefits, final salary payments, and other entitlements based on their contracts and Nigerian labour laws. However, concerns have emerged over whether Pfizer will fully meet these obligations.
This development comes amid Nigeria’s ongoing economic challenges, which have led several multinational companies to downsize or exit the market, resulting in widespread job losses.
