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Airlines’ cut workforce to 3, 000 from 5000
*More workers to lose jobs
*Chide NCAA over multiple charges, wants automation suspended
The Nigerian aviation workforce hitherto put at over 5, 000 has shrunk to 3, 000, no thanks to the collapse of airlines and the economic recession that has put airlines in precarious situation.
President, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), a group comprising all airlines in the country, Capt. Noggie Meggison, said carriers have been forced to cut down on staff strength as a result of low utilisation of aircraft, shrinking passenger traffic occasioned by diminishing purchasing power and above all government policy which has done more harm to the carriers.
He also lamented that multiple charges ‘forced down’ on them by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) encompassed in Ticket Sales Charge (TSC), en-route navigational charges by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), sundry charges by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) have all conspired to make carriers have short lifespan.
It would be recalled that Aero Contractors recently disengaged over 60 per cent of its workforce which represents about 1, 200 workers over what the Managing Director of the carrier, Capt. Ado Sanusi said was due to redundancy.
Sanusi said Aero had been grappling with huge and unrealistic personnel cost as well as other operational challenges worsened by lack of enough aircraft to keep all the workers meaningfully engaged.
Although, Arik is operating, there are indications that many of the workers would be laid off following the shrinking of the airline’s operations and shortage of serviceable airplanes from 30 to eight that are now in service.
Workers of former Nigeria’s biggest airline, Arik is on the edge, awaiting what would become of them by the time the airline’s management decides to sack workers. Overland Airways also recently cut worker’s strength, especially onshore workers which elicited protest from aviation unions.
Meggison also faulted several charges that are levied on the carriers saying this made the country’s aviation sector unattractive.
While other West African Countries’ airlines operate 24 hours, Nigerian carriers are subjected to daylight operations only till 6:30pm in most of the airports, yet the West African charges are almost a fraction of Nigeria’s domestic billing.
Sadly also Nigerian airlines are the only mode of transport paying VAT. Marine, road and rail transport don’t pay; and even the foreign airlines operating into Nigeria are exempted from paying VAT in Nigeria Federal Inland Revenue Service.
His words, “Nigeria needs to jettison multiple taxation in aviation. Airlines have over 20 charges levied against us, so, how do we survive this situation? There is no where in the world where airlines pay en-route navigational charge and several other charges. Ghana recently reduced price of aviation fuel to about N120 per litre but here in Nigeria. We also fault disparity with what they charge foreign airlines.”
The AON chief called for the suspension of automation of revenue remittance by airlines to the NCAA until the parameters that constitute the five per cent Ticket and Cargo Sales Charge are clearly and properly defined.
“AON has no problem with the authority going ahead to automate the collection and remittance of the said charges, but that the NCAA needs to give clarification on what constitutes the five per cent Ticket and Cargo sales Charge. Five per cent TSC is only applicable on base fare in compliance with industry practice and as currently applicable to international carriers operating out of Nigeria.
“AON members are currently remitting the five per cent TSC charges and it is on record that NCAA introduced financial clearance process for services over the last year. Despite our Members improved payment, infrastructure and service level continue to deteriorate across all facets of the industry under the same authority”.
He stated that the airline body also has issues with the immediate mandatory automation without first addressing the cost of integration while sadly at the same time not asking the foreign carriers operating in Nigeria to join the same automation platform and are charged on their base fares.
He accused NCAA of preying on domestic airlines, describing airlines as easy target, a cash cow and for cheap publicity, over regulating domestic operators, and pushing domestic airlines to the edge of insolvency/ bankruptcy.
He noted that it is this kind of policy that has reduced the lifespan of Nigerian airlines and have consumed over 25 airlines in the last 30 years since deregulation in 1982.
“While the same NCAA is weak and has turned blind eyes in enforcement of other sectors, that is, runway quality, airport fencing, bird strike, Navigational aid, fuel quality control by oil marketers, poor quality delivery by service providers, and Agencies inflicting unauthorised and illegal billing contrary to the provisions of the 2006 ACT. (Part V (12) (2)).”
He stated that airlines are tired and cannot continue to be the only soft target or easy prey, appealing to the NCAA to rather focus their energy on being an enabler and to foster growth in the Nigerian aviation industry in line with their Mission Statement; “To provide aviation safety and economic regulation in the most efficient, effective, quality and technology driven manner to the satisfaction andbenefit of all stakeholders, consistent with the highest international standards and the sustainable development of the industry and national economy.
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