Flight delays hit JKIA amid labour dispute

JKIA is bracing for major disruptions after the Kenya Airport Workers Union (KAWU) confirmed it is pushing ahead with plans for industrial action.

The move follows the collapse of negotiations between the union and the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority after a seven-day ultimatum expired on Monday without a breakthrough.

Speaking on February 14, KAWU Secretary General Moss Ndiema said members stationed at the country’s main aviation hub had been mobilised in readiness for a strike.

“Industrial action is 99 per cent as we speak, and we are not asking for impossible things; we are not asking for wealth or richness. For an employee whose pay has not been reviewed for the past 12 or 15 years, how do you expect them to live?” Ndiema said.

The union is demanding sweeping reforms, including the full implementation of Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs), a review of salaries that have remained unchanged for over a decade, and the absorption of long-serving contract workers into permanent and pensionable terms.

Ndiema cautioned that unless management formally recognises grade four and five employees as eligible for union membership and concludes a CBA within a week after Monday, the union will unveil a strike timetable.

“We are determined to deliver a CBA in one week if management accepts that those grades are unionisable. But if they continue to place barriers in our way, we are prepared to act,” he added.

The standoff cuts across several key aviation institutions, including the Kenya Airports Authority, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority and the national carrier Kenya Airways.

Union officials argue that employers have failed to honour court directives regarding the conversion of contract workers and the recognition of unionisable staff.

At the heart of the dispute is a court order directing employers to transition long-serving contract employees to permanent and pensionable positions by December 31, 2025. Ndiema faulted management for filing appeals or slowing down the implementation process despite earlier commitments made both in court and before the Ministry of Labour.

According to the union, at least 70 employees qualify for permanent employment under the ruling.

Although talks with management are still ongoing, KAWU says preparations for industrial action are at an advanced stage, raising the prospect of significant disruption to operations at the country’s busiest airport.