PENSIONERS of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) have given its management two weeks to address the withdrawal of some of their benefits or face an industrial action.
They said before the management withdrew the benefits, they had enjoyed them for 14 years.
Their threat followed a stalemated meeting of July 24 between an ad hoc committee set up by the managing director to dialogue with the pensioners.
The pensioners, under the aegis of Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP), told reporters that FAAN’s new management had stopped their emoluments, which they had been getting since 2008, based on an agreement between them and the agency’s management.
Their National Chairman Rasaki Ope and National Secretary Emeka Njoku at FAAN said some people at the agency were out to mislead the new management under Capt. Hamisu Yadudu to review only the salary and proficiency while leaving out utilities, meal subsidy and housing, among others.
The union leaders wondered why such decision should be taken without reasons, after 14 year.
They threatened that should the FAAN management insist on its position, the pensioners will canvass the implementation of the 33 per cent increase on current pension, based on of the Federal Government circular.
According to them, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) were paying their pensioners, based on the circular.
The pensioners regretted that the FAAN management, for over 10 years, refused to review their pension, as against the five-year requirement for such review.
They said the FAAN management had defaulted with existing regulations stipulated in the agreement that pension rates would be increased only when there is corresponding increase in FAAN workers’ salary and relevant allowances.
Alluding to series of agreements reached between the agency’s management between 2002 and 2008, the pensioners argued that it was baseless to agitate for increases based on government circulars, as it was already resolved in 2002 that anything contrary to the agreement would attract legal action.
The pensioners warned that they would no longer allow their rights to be taken from them due to the inability of the human resources and administrative directorate to restorer their benefits.
