Aviation workers plan protest September 18, reject 50% revenue deductions

Aviation workers’ unions on Thursday announced plans to stage a peaceful protest on September 18, 2024.

The General Secretary of the National Union of Air Transport Employees, Ocheme Aba, and the Deputy General Secretary of the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Frances Akinjole, disclosed this in a statement.

Other unions that signed the statement include the Secretary General of ANAP, Abdul Rasaq; the General Secretary of the National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers, Olayinka Abioye; and the General Secretary of the Amalgamated Union of Public Corporation, Civil Service Technical and Recreational Services Employees, Sikiru Waheed.

They blamed the decision on the refusal of the Federal Government to accede to their call for the reversal of the 50 per cent deduction policy from the internally generated revenues of agencies in the aviation sector.

“All workers of the NCAA, FAAN, NAMA, NiMet, NCAT and NSIB, joint solidarity of all aviation workers are hereby directed to embark on peaceful protests at all airports nationwide on 18th September 2024 to demand the discontinuation of deduction of 50% from the internally generated revenue of the agencies mentioned above through an exemption,” the statement read.

“All efforts on our part have failed to impress it upon the Federal Government that all the Agencies are cost recovery, and not profit making, organizations. As such they cannot survive on half of their incomes under any model of administration, or any other guise whatsoever. And the ultimatum given for the Minister of Aviation on same has expired since the end of August, 2024.”

According to the statement, the protest is as a result of the unions’ demand for the discontinuation of the deduction from the following agencies: the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, the Nigeria College of Aviation Technology, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency, and the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau.

The TSA policy, initially introduced with a 25 per cent deduction from revenue-generating agencies of the Federal Government in October 2022, escalated to 40 per cent shortly after.

But the current administration increased the deductions to 50 per cent in January 2024.