Kenya Airways ends its recognition of a pact with pilots’ union

Kenya Airways Plc terminated its recognition of a collective bargaining agreement with a pilots’ union as a labour dispute that has left thousands of passengers stranded across its network dragged into a fourth day.

The airline accused the Kenya Airline Pilots Association officials, or Kalpa, of disregarding dispute resolution mechanisms and ignoring a court ruling that declared the industrial action illegal, according to a letter to Kenya’s Ministry of Labour and Social Protection.

“Due to this unlawful action by Kalpa, the customers of KQ both locally and globally have suffered and continue to suffer immeasurable inconvenience and losses, exposing the airline to irreparable damage in respect to its financial position and reputation,” according to the letter. “This amounts to economic sabotage.”

Separately, the East African nation’s labour court summoned 11 union officials “to show cause why they should not be punished for contempt of court for disobeying court orders,” according to an order by Justice Anna Mwaure.

The court outlawed the strike on October 31, but Kalpa members went ahead and commenced one on November 5. They are seeking better working conditions, including reinstatement of a $493,600 monthly contribution to a staff provident fund.

—Bloomberg