The CEO of Kenya Airways (KQ) Allan Kilavuka has revealed that they lost at least Ksh80 million during the September 11, 2024, strike which paralysed operations in major airports across the country.
Speaking to a local TV station on Monday, September 23, 2024, Kilavuka stated that the strike had brought about unforeseen losses to the company when employees with ties with the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) went on a go-slow while others protested openly at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
“Strikes are very bad to us; not only are they disruptive and inconveniencing to customers who are very important, but they are also costly,” Kilavuka said.
“For example this strike that happened the other time; if you look at the cost of time, rebooking and paying compensation, it is significant. We are estimating at least Ksh80 million in terms of cost for that one-day disruption.”
KQ half-year profits
However, KQ made headlines in June when they posted the first profit in their half-year financial statement in over ten years.
At the time, Kilavuka said there were high hopes for the year, adding that the Ksh513 million half-year profit after tax was due to a 10 per cent increase in passengers and the strength of the Kenyan shilling against the dollar.
September strike
During the September 11, 2024, strike, aviation workers decried the opacity surrounding the planned takeover of JKIA by an Indian conglomerate – Adani Holdings.
However, KAWU Secretary-General Moss Ndiema called off the strike after reaching a deal with Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir and Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU) boss Francis Atwoli.
Chirchir promised the workers that the details of the deal which proposes a 30-year lease of the country’s main gateway would be tabled in Court to allow for scrutiny.
“We will work together and build points of convergence. We have an agreement. We are aware that we have been taken to court. We will now present all the documents to the court to ensure the public understands,” Chirchir said on September 11, 2024.
The strike left hundreds of passengers stranded at the JKIA, Moi International Airport and Kisumu International Airport. Further delays were witnessed in Rwanda’s Kigali Airport as well as Uganda’s Entebbe Airport as a result of the strike.
The airport workers expressed concerns that the planned takeover could lead to massive job losses and lower terms of service for surviving workers.
