Workers in the air transport sector have rejected the much-anticipated Condition of Service (CoS), citing discrepancies in what was negotiated with the National Salaries, Income, and Wages Commission (NSIWC) and the released document.

Rising from the executive council meeting of the National Association of Air Traffic Engineers (NAAE), the workers said the CoS failed to meet expectations of better welfare.

It will be recalled that aviation workers have been angling for CoS review for over 10 years, with a series of negotiations held with various agencies of government.

National President of NAAE, Selzing Miri, yesterday, said the released condition of service, in their own case, failed to capture their demands and concerns as engineers, and as negotiated with the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) management.

Miri explained that the salaries and wages commission expunged a vital part of the document, and released something different from what was negotiated with NAMA, and did not reflect the agreement signed by unions and NAMA management, and eventually sent to the commission.

He noted that the exclusion of the reviewed professional allowances as negotiated and approved by NAMA management in the released CoS is not only unjust, but viewed as a deliberate attempt to frustrate the commitment, enthusiasm, dedication and productivity of workers, who tirelessly contribute to ensuring safe and efficient air traffic operations.

“We firmly believe that the omission of these allowances fails to acknowledge the immense contributions, responsibility, expertise and risks associated with our profession. This is a deliberate attempt to frustrate workers and cause industrial unrest in the system,” he said.

Miri added that the engineers would not relent until they get a fair deal from the industry and government.