A group of workers at an Ebola treatment facility in northeast Congo initiated a strike on Monday, citing a lack of salary and bonus payments that has persisted for two months. The protest at the Rwampara General Hospital, located in the Ituri province—the epicenter of the current outbreak—has resulted in the facility being shut down. Demonstrating staff members have blocked access to the hospital and burned a tire outside the site to signal their frustration.
The striking workforce consists of various essential personnel, including epidemiologists, case investigators, drivers, and gravediggers. Bahati Claude, a health worker at the facility, expressed confusion and frustration regarding the situation, stating that the staff does not want to abandon their duties despite the lack of compensation. This particular treatment center is separate from another facility in Ituri where clinical studies on two experimental Ebola treatments are currently underway.
Congo has been managing this outbreak since May, which involves a strain of the Ebola virus for which there is currently no approved vaccine or treatment. According to the World Health Organization, the outbreak was declared on May 15 after the virus had been circulating for weeks. The delay in identifying the pathogen occurred because initial testing focused on more common strains of the disease. Congolese health minister Roger Kamba recently noted that the virus has expanded to two additional provinces.
Addressing the labor dispute, Minister Kamba stated during a visit to Ituri last week that the government is in the process of verifying its payroll to ensure payments reach the correct individuals. He acknowledged that unauthorized names had been added to the list, complicating the disbursement process. The minister emphasized that the government has the resources to resolve the issue once the beneficiary list is corrected.
Official data from Congolese authorities reports 1,926 confirmed cases of the virus, resulting in 702 deaths. In related developments, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced on X that a second American humanitarian worker infected with Ebola in eastern Congo has been transferred to Germany for specialized care. The first U.S. citizen to test positive for the virus was a doctor who had been working in the region during the early stages of the outbreak.
“We don’t know how it is possible to not have been paid for two months,” Bahati Claude, a health worker at the hospital told The Associated Press. “We don’t want to give up the job.”
