This archive report was first published on 17 September 2019.
Kenya Airways pilots have shelved their planned strike, which was set to begin on Friday, amidst a contentious dispute over contract hires.
The decision to cancel the strike was reportedly made after a closed-door meeting between the Kenya Airline Pilots Association (KALPA) and the airline's management.
According to sources close to the meeting, the cancellation of the strike was a result of a desire to create further room for stakeholder engagement.
However, KALPA officials have yet to issue an official statement on the matter.
"We will come up with an official position and share. I cannot disclose more at this time," KALPA Secretary General Murithi Nyagah told Citizen Digital in a phone interview.
At the heart of the dispute is the airline's plan to hire 20 contract pilots to alleviate the workload on current staff.
Kenya Airways Chief Executive Officer Sebastian Mikosz has insisted on the hiring of local talent, citing the need to grow the airline's operations.
"We are hiring 20 local pilots on the Embraer even if 100 pilots is what we require on a minimum. The pilots have been resisting hires on other fleets. This will prevent growth for the airline as most of our potential is in middle fleets," he said.
The dispute between the airline's management and its pilots has been ongoing for some time, with both sides trading blame for the carrier's financial struggles.
Costs associated with delayed flights have been estimated at Ksh.5 billion annually, exacerbating the airline's poor financial performance.
Kenya Airways posted a loss of Ksh.8.6 billion in the first six months of 2019, with rising operational and impairment costs wiping out marginal growth in operating revenues.
