The Industrial Court in Nairobi has ordered Kenya Airways to reinstate more than 400 employees who had been sacked by tomorrow morning. Making the ruling today, Industrial Court Judge James Rika termed the retrenchment exercise by Kenya Airways as ‘unlawful’ as regards the new Kenyan Constitution.
Kenya Airways embarked on a massive staff layoff in August sending home more that 500 employees in a cost cutting measure at a time when the airline industry has been hit by high operation costs mainly due to fuel costs. The harsh operating environment marked by low passenger numbers and high costs of operations sent the airline to cut its staff numbers while rolling out an aggressive expansion plan.
“The management of Kenya Airwaysseems to trivialize & downplay the labour laws and the constitution of Kenya.” Judge James Rika said while making the ruling. And added: “Under the new constitution, companies must adapt to the new laws or perish”
In an earlier statement Kenya Airways said its labour costs have more than doubled in the last six years to KES 13.4 billion in the last financial year from KES 6 billion in 2007 .
According to reports, as of March 2012, the airline’s employee headcount stood at 4,834 with at least 14% of them being overseas employees.
The airline has been flying through turbulent times in the last few months with staff unrest, customer complaints and loss of passenger numbers due to competition both on local and international routes.