The Federal Government has directed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to sanction any airline found preventing its employees from exercising their right to join labour unions.
The directive emerged from an emergency meeting convened by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, aimed at strengthening cooperation between aviation unions, airline operators and regulatory agencies.
The meeting followed earlier engagements that led to the temporary suspension of planned industrial action by aviation workers. Discussions focused on resolving outstanding issues affecting workers and ensuring industrial harmony within the sector.
In a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mahmud Adam Kambari, the government reaffirmed workers’ constitutional right to freely decide whether or not to belong to labour unions.
As part of the resolutions reached, the NCAA was instructed to ensure aviation unions are granted direct access to employees of all airlines for the sole purpose of distributing union membership forms and allowing workers make independent decisions regarding unionisation.
The ministry warned that any airline that obstructs such interaction or attempts to influence workers against union membership would face regulatory sanctions from the NCAA.
The meeting also addressed financial obligations owed by airlines to aviation agencies. Regulatory agencies were directed to engage airlines individually and develop realistic repayment plans that take into account operational costs and prevailing economic conditions.
According to the ministry, directors of finance and accounts across aviation agencies are expected to meet with airline operators within one week to agree on practical schedules for settling outstanding payments.
Stakeholders further resolved that another meeting would be held in one month to assess progress on the implementation of the agreements reached and review the state of labour relations within the sector.
The government expressed optimism that the resolutions would promote industrial peace, strengthen collaboration among stakeholders and improve the overall stability of Nigeria’s aviation industry.
