Former staff picket Dana Air over unpaid pensions

Former Dana Air members of staff protested at the airline’s headquarters on Tuesday over unpaid pensions.

As early as 9am, they blocked the entrances of the airline’s headquarters in Lagos, flaunting placards that conveyed their grievances. They claimed that the company has not been remitting pension contributions since 2008 and that the pension balances in their accounts are very low. 

Daily Sun reported that about 1000 employees, including 583 permanent members of staff and expatriates, were laid off by Dana Air on Thursday, May 9, 2024, following the suspension of its operations by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). But the company said it is undergoing an operational audit by the NCAA and to manage resources effectively during the audit, it decided to temporarily lay off some staff members in order to facilitate a smooth audit process and review operational procedures.

The airline’s CEO had assured the staff that pension payments would commence on May 20, 2024, but the staff are skeptical saying they have heard similar promises before. They demanded immediate payment of their outstanding pensions.

A staff member said she worked as cabin crew for Dana for 10 years. “Will you believe me if I tell you about the balance in my pension account as I chat with you now is 51,000 naira? Even if I worked as a cleaner for 10 years, my pension account balance shouldn’t be 51,000 naira. Dana is just trying to save face right now by saying they have started paying. We are tired of the same story over and over again. This is the only method they understand.”

Other staff shared tales of what they describe as injustice from the airline, stating that enough was enough.

So far, it is unclear whether staff have started receiving payments, but they remain resolute in their demands. “This is not the first time we have heard these promises and assurances from management. We are used to and tired of Dana Air’s antics,” one of them said.