More than 500 sacked staff of Dana Air on Tuesday stormed the aviation company’s entrance in the Oshodi area of Lagos State to protest.
The aggrieved workers are accusing the company of sacking them suddenly under unclear circumstances and then refusing to pay their entitlements, including their April salary.
LagosPost reported that Dana Air terminated the employment of some employees after its operations were suspended by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) after one of its aircrafts skidded off the runway at the Lagos International Airport.
Dana Air announced that its decision to lay off staff is temporary until the audit is completed.
However, during the protest, the sacked staff threatened to explore every mechanism to fight their sack, which they described as “injustice,” with placards with inscriptions such as; ‘Give us our money’, ‘A airline owing its staff can’t be safe’, and ‘Systematic thieving’, among others.
Speaking with journalists, the Training Manager, Magdalene Onyeukwu, claiming to have worked with Dana for 15 years, said she got her sack letter through a WhatsApp message.
She added that all their access, including official lines, have been deactivated.
She said, “I have been with Dana since 2008; I was part of those who participated in the demo flight that gave Dana its licence; even when there were challenges when salaries were not paid, we remained committed until this issue of runway incursions, which is normal.
“But before we knew it, they started sending us WhatsApp messages saying our services are no longer needed. Who does that? What about our gratuity, pension and even our April salary? This is not possible after 15 years of service?”
The affected workers vowed to ensure the airline pays their entitlements including their contributory pension, April salary among other entitlements.
Alleluia is the Assistant Editor and Content Writer at LagosPost.ng. She is a prolific writer and editor, she has written features and news stories on Lifestyle, Sports, Business, Politics and B2B marketing. She is also an event coordinator, host and social media content creator.
