Two major aviation unions have given Nigerian airlines one week to clear debts owed to aviation agencies, warning that failure to pay could trigger industrial action.
The Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, ATSSSAN, and the National Union of Air Transport Employees, NUATE, said in a joint letter that airline operators have ignored an earlier 14-day ultimatum that expired on July 23.
The letter, signed by ATSSSAN General Secretary Frances Akinjole and NUATE Deputy General Secretary Odinaka Igbokwe, was sent to the Chairman of the Airline Operators of Nigeria at MMA2, Ikeja, Lagos.
The unions are demanding remittance of the outstanding 5 percent Ticket Sale Charges, TSC. They argue that the unpaid funds are starving aviation agencies of money needed to keep Nigeria’s airspace safe, and are also hurting workers’ welfare and conditions of service.
“The Aviation Agencies remain starved of the required funds to keep our sky safe… This unnecessary demotivation factor to the air transport worker is a security and safety risk,” the notice stated.
“We hereby issue a 7-Day Notice to every TSC defaulter to remit the total debt owed to the agencies. Failure to do so will result in our Unions’ concrete actions at their various premises,” the unions added.
The dispute comes after the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, placed 11 domestic airlines on a “no-pay-no-service” list over unpaid obligations and directed its directorates to withhold services.
However, NCAA Director-General Chris Najomo temporarily suspended enforcement of that directive. He cited rising aviation fuel costs and current pressures on airline operations and industry stability. Najomo stressed that the suspension is not a waiver or cancellation of the debts.
The unions say they can no longer “helplessly fold our hands” while safety in the sector remains compromised.
