NCAA Appeals to Aviation Unions to Sheathe Sword Amid Industrial Dispute
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has appealed to aviation unions to suspend their ongoing industrial action and embrace dialogue, saying the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo, SAN, is working to resolve the issues.
In a Tuesday statement signed by its Director General, Capt. Chris Najomo, the NCAA said it is aware of the action by the unions and its impact on passengers and other stakeholders.
It was earlier reported that the dispute occasioning the industrial action centres on the non-remittance of the 5% Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) by some airlines.
By law, airlines collect the statutory levy on every passenger ticket and remit it to the NCAA, which then shares the revenue among regulatory and safety agencies including NCAA, NAMA and NiMet. ebeb
Union leaders under the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) and the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) have alleged that several indigenous carriers have accumulated billions of naira in unremitted TSC deductions, which they say has deprived aviation agencies of operational liquidity.
Following an expired 14-day notice, the unions activated a final seven-day ultimatum on July 28, warning of ground disruptions and service halts if the debts were not cleared.
This newspaper also reported that NUATE and ATSSSAN shut down the operations of Air Peace in Abuja and Lagos in the early hours of Tuesday over allegations of blocking workers from unionising and non-remittance of ticket sales charges owed to the NCAA.
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The unions, led by the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), said they had to picket the airline after the warning they gave on August 4, when the unions announced a notice of picketing and declared they were prepared to strike “at any time without further notice.”
In its statement, NCAA said the matter would have been addressed at a meeting convened by the Aviation minister last week, but the meeting could not hold as airline operators failed to honour the invitation.
The NCAA appealed to the unions “to sheathe their swords and exercise restraint pending the return” of the minister, whom it said has been actively working towards resolving the issues.
The NCAA assured the travelling public that flight safety remains uncompromised and that the authority continues to exercise its statutory safety oversight responsibilities.
“We appeal to all parties to embrace dialogue and cooperation. We are confident that the matter will be resolved shortly and normal flight operations will resume as soon as practicable,” the statement further reads.
The NCAA also regretted the inconvenience caused to passengers and appreciated their patience and understanding.
Meanwhile, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) had opposed any disruption of service, arguing that airlines have no direct transactional relationship with the unions on TSC and that the action is based on misinformation.
AON added that domestic carriers are operating under severe financial pressure due to rising aviation fuel costs and multiple charges.
