Passengers stranded as workers strike at Kenya's biggest airport

Hundreds of airline passengers were stranded in East Africa's busiest airport when aviation workers downed their tools early on Wednesday morning.

The striking workers' grievances range from unfair staff hiring to poor remuneration, they are demanding an overhaul of the board management of the Kenya Airports Authority due to the proposed takeover of the airport by the national carrier Kenya Airways.

The strike followed a notice issued by the Kenya Aviation Workers Union, questioning why the loss-making airline was taking over the operations of the airport for 30 years.

The strike, which affected early departures of international airlines, was expected to fizzle out as the government stepped in to restore normalcy in the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

One expert, Robert Kagiri, director of the center for strategic policy management at the Africa Policy Institute think tank, predicted the merger between the Kenya Airways and the airport authority would be accomplished within the next few months.

Despite assurances by the Kenyan government that operations at the airport were expected to resume by noon, passengers were still stranded then. Kenya Airways announced that plans were underway to ensure its three international flights - to Amsterdam, Mumbai and London - would depart by noon.

'Strategic merger'

The Kenya Aviation Workers Union, which has a membership of about 10,000, a quarter of whom are Kenya Airways employees excluding pilots, termed the move wrong.

The strike also affected customer service, fire and rescue, ground flight services, engineering, finance, transport, equipment, loading and cabin grooming services.

Kagiri admitted that although the proposed merger deal was contentious, it was essential for the survival of the loss making airline.

"The merger is a strategic partnership that is the only way to revive the ailing airline. Otherwise, with the aggressive competition posed by the Ethiopian and the Middle Eastern airlines, KQ (Kenya Airways) will likely go under," said Kagiri.

"The strategic position of Nairobi as the continental hub can only be accentuated if some of the ambitious projects, which have currently stalled such as the development of the second terminal, take off. Financing has to be done through loans, which are state guaranteed. This is the only way," he said.

He said by managing the airport, the airline would automatically receive preferential treatment and be more competitive against its rivals.

In February, the airport authority explained to the parliament the proposed concession program that will see KQ operate, maintain and develop the airport under the privately initiated investment proposal it submitted. The parliament however halted the process.

The authority manages six airports and several airstrips in the country.