KENYA AIRWAYS GETS REPRIEVE FROM COURT OVER REINSTATEMENT ORDER
Information received from Nairobi indicates that the Industrial Court in a change of mind granted an application by Kenya Airways to hold off the ordered reinstatement of over 400 staff who left the airline last year under a voluntary retirement scheme. In September last year was Kenya’s national airline left with few choices but start to reduce staff cost on a serious scale, after the first half results came in with a sharp downturn of financial fortunes and a major half year loss.
When the Industrial Court ordered the airline to re-instate the nearly 450 staff of the almost 600 who left at the time, KQ opted to lodge an appeal at a court of higher instance to ‘prevent lasting financial damage and prevent a precedent which could be applied against any other company too in the future’ as a regular source close to the carrier commented a few weeks ago.
A different Industrial Court judge yesterday issued an order of stay of execution, until the appeal has been heard and ruled upon.
It is understood that the airline has also outsourced certain functions to keep rising cost under control.
In a related development it was also confirmed that Jambo Jet, Kenya Airways’ lower cost airline ‘baby’, did not launch as was often suggested in 2012 and no new date could be ascertained when, if at all, this launch will eventually take place. Watch this space for regular and breaking aviation news from Eastern Africa.
