BEVERLY HILLS, November 08, (THEWILL) – The recent lay-off of over 20 Nigerian workers by Virgin Atlantic Airways (VAA) is swelling the already bloated Nigerian labour market.
VAA, in a recent emailed statement, explained that it was no longer sustainable for the airline to continue to retain the Nigerian crew at this time, saying their services were no longer needed.
Kudirat Scott-Igbene, marketing and communications manager, VAA, said feedback from the airline’s customers indicated the Nigerian crew were no longer a requirement on the Lagos route.
“We have decided that we will no longer have crew based in Lagos. This is by no means a reflection on our Lagos-based cabin crew. The primary purpose of our locally based cabin crew has been to provide cultural expertise and customer feedback has shown us that this is no longer a requirement on the Lagos route.
“The additional complexity required to operate an international crew base where there are no foreign language requirements means it is no longer sustainable going forward,” she said.
It would be recalled that Virgin Atlantic had hired the Nigerian crew members because of the demand for cultural understanding on its routes at the time they started operations. However, the airline claimed that the recent feedback from its customers showed that their services were no longer needed.
Scott-Igbene insisted that the airline was not winding up operations in Nigeria, as it did about a year ago, when it closed down its Nigerian call centre, adding that this announcement has no impact on the airline’s flying programme as it plans to continue flights between Lagos and London.
“After 14 years flying the route, we remain committed to servicing the Nigerian people, whether it be for business, family or education”, she added.
She was reacting to the reports that VAA sacked all its Nigerian crew, having allegedly given only three weeks notice and without any severance packages to the affected staff. This, according to reports, is regardless of their length of service with the airline.
