The United Labour Congress and the Nigeria Pilots and Engineers union on
Tuesday shut the offices of Arik Airlines, due to the inability of the
airline to pay its workers for seven months.
The staff of Arik Air staged a protest at the domestic terminal of the
Murtala Muhammed airport over the airline’s failure to pay the salary
arrears and other anti-labour practices.
You are owing pilots who 'cruise' people in the sky for several months?
The protesters displayed placards containing messages communicating their grievances.
The Acting Chairman of ULC, Alhaji Tokunbo Korodo, said in a telephone
interview in Lagos that the union could no longer tolerate the inhuman
treatment of Arik’s management to workers.
Korodo said that apart from owing workers for seven months, the
management of the airline was not remitting the taxes of workers to
relevant bodies.
The unionist said that five executive members of the ULC working in Arik had been sacked.
He said, “We have shut down Arik Airlines operations, due to non-payment
of seven months salary and non- remittance of workers’ taxes to
relevant agencies.
“The office will remain shut until the end of the year, unless the
management reaches a compromise with our union on the anti-labour
issues.
“We cannot continue to watch Arik Airlines’ management maltreating our members. Enough is enough.
“It is a pity that many intending passengers are stranded because of our
action but we have appealed to the management to look into our demand
but to no avail.”
Korodo, who is also the South-West Chairman of NUPENG, said that the
union had directed tanker drivers to stop supply of aviation fuel to the
airline until it resolved the issues.
NAN reports that he said the action is not limited to Arik Lagos office,
describing it as a nationwide clampdown on Arik Airlines.
The National Union of Air Transport Employees, Air Transport Senior
Staff Services Association of Nigeria and the National Association of
Aircraft Pilots and Engineers had in a joint statement on Monday ordered
its members to commence the strike.
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