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NCAA to withdraw airlines’ licences over unpaid salaries

By on September 6, 2014

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority is set to clamp down on airline operators that default in the payment of the salaries of their workers.

The regulator, in a statement on Wednesday, frowned on the situation where the airlines were increasingly becoming negligent in the payment of their staff salaries.

To this end, it said in the statement signed by its General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Fan Ndubuoke, that operators who were found guilty of this action would be thoroughly sanctioned and might lose their Airline Operators’ Certificates.

The statement explained that the threat, which came on the heels of a meeting between the regulatory agency and some of the airlines, became necessary when health reports from the airlines were indicating gaps in financial stability.

The statement read in part, “The airlines have been told that the NCAA will not condone a situation where their staff will disrupt operations, which will affect the travel plans of passengers who have purchased their tickets.

“Consequently, the authority has written a warning letter to the affected airlines, informing them that non-payment of staff salaries is unacceptable to the agency.

“The regulator, therefore, warns the airlines that if this act persists, it will recourse to sanctions, one of which may result in the suspension of the Air Operators’ Certificate.”

The statement noted that at the meeting, the NCAA expressed serious concern over the non-payment of salaries by the airlines and viewed the development as detrimental to the continuous growth the industry had witnessed in recent times.

The statement added, “As far as the NCAA is concerned, the issue of non-payment of staff salaries is critical to safety, because the moment an airline cannot meet its financial obligations, it is believed that the staff morale will be down and this can impact negatively on safety and security of its operations.

“It will be recalled that three airlines were sometime last year suspended due to their inability to pay staff salaries; in fact, the NCAA is insisting that until all the arrears of salaries are paid, these airlines will not be cleared for further operations.”

 

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