BY LAWANI MIKAIRU & DANIEL ETEGHE
LAGOS — About 53 workers of Chanchangi Airlines who have been on compulsory leave protested, Monday, at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA’s headquarters, Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos over unpaid salaries alleged to have accrued since 2010 when the airline sent them  on compulsory leave.

The workers who decried the airline’s delay in paying their salaries registered their grievances at the ticket counters of the company at the airport before proceeding to the NCAA’s headquarters.

They alleged that they had not been paid their salaries for 36 months, a situation which they said could not be tolerated any more.

The workers further said they were asked to stay off work since 2010, when the airline started having operational challenges and had not been paid since.

Receiving the workers at NCAA, Director of Human Resources, Mr. Austin Amadi Ifeanyi and the Director of Consumer Protection, Alhaji Adamu Abdulahi assured them that the regulatory agency would look into their plights and provide possible solutions by ensuring that the airline does what is right.

The directors further commended the aggrieved workers for towing the path of peace by reporting the matter at the appropriate quarters as it is the duty of NCAA to ensure that all goes well in the aviation sector.

According to them, the regulatory authority will investigate their claims and call Chanchangi Airline to order to ensure that the grievances of the workers are addressed and their demand met.

They however gave a week timeline for the aggrieved workers to get back, assuring them that the matter would be critically looked into for the health of the industry.

Meanwhile, the station manager of Chanchangi Airline, Mr Babadiya Ahmed said the airline is already looking into the matter, but however affirmed that the workers were not sacked.

He said they were asked to proceed on compulsory leave due to operational issues the carrier is grappling with saying that very soon the matter would be resolved.