Management of Antrak Air is to face the National Labour Commission (NLC) for the hearing of a petition of redundancy lodged against the company by its staff.
The company and its directors are likely to incur the wrath of the NLC should they failed to heed to the summons of the letter within 14 days of receipt, which is today.
Almost three years after Ankrak, own by one of the country’s influence peddlers, Asuma Banda, stopped operations, this paper is reliably informed that not a penny has been paid to the workers either by way of salary or allowance.
When the workers, numbering 48 agitated, they were informed by management of the airline that they would be paid half for the said three month suspension but were only paid for only June and July after it had issued a statement announcing it would be out of operations for only three months due to certain challenges confronting the company.
Subsequently, in a statement signed by the Legal Counselors for the staff of Antrak Air, S.K Boafo and Company, the lawyers said they had received instructions to initiate legal procedures to recover what was due their clients without further recourse hence the Labour Commission.
“We have our clients’ instructions to demand the payment of their full salaries from July 2015 till date and the transportation allowances from December 2013 and June 2015” the statement hinted.
“We are available to meet management of Antrak Air to work out the sums due each of our clients without any delay” the statement further announced.
Authorities of the company have also been asked not to appeared on the day of the hearing in the absent of its Managing Director, Mr. Fadel Banda.
If Ankrak and its management fail to appear before the commission today, it would be the seventh time the company has refused to obey the summons of the labour commission to answer question bothering on nonpayment of salaries and allowances.
The statement signed by the company’s Managing Director, Fadel Banda at when the issues started read: “We have been compelled to strategically suspend our operations from the domestic market with the aim to restructure to meet the rapidly changing and competitive environment”.
The statement said that management will however be looking at re-organizing as it concerns it business model during the three months period.
The statement also states management of the company was in advance talk to take delivery of their own air craft which will give them more flexibility and less restricted scheduling.
“We will return with most convenient schedules competitive fares and a more friendly service than ever before” the statement disclosed.
Barely three years on, nothing has been said to the workers who are agitation for their due.
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