Bristow pilots, engineers to begin strike

Pilots and engineers working with Bristow Helicopters would begin an indefinite strike with effect from midnight on Monday.

The workers were angry over what they called “discriminatory policies and consistent victimization of Nigerians working for the carrier.”

• Airport closure: Bristow routes Lagos-Abuja service via Minna
• Union’s action violates relevant labour laws, says Bristow

The affected workers under the aegis of the National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) also rejected the bench-marking salaries of indigenous pilots and engineers N345/$1, saying the rate was “obsolete.”

They said the proposal to implement N355/$1 rate is not acceptable, saying none of the proposed rates is obtainable in any foreign exchange window.

The union was also protesting the failure of the airline to train qualified persons in Airline Transport Pilot License (ATPL) among others.

They also decried the “odious laying off of young cadet and trainee engineers after several years of tearful sacrificial toiling on the basis of a promised career in the company.”

Deputy General Secretary of NAAPE, Umoh Ofonime, said the workers had earlier embarked on a three-day warning strike and another seven-day action to pressure the management.

“Unfortunately, Bristow management was unable to proffer any solution even after the union graciously extended seven days’ notice period at the behest of Bristow management.”