Operations of Turkish Airlines at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, ground to a halt on Tuesday following a protest by aviation workers over the alleged unlawful dismissal of seven union members.
Turkish Airlines
Members of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) picketed the airline’s counters at the international terminal, forcing hundreds of passengers to return home after check-in.
Protesters stormed the terminal with placards and solidarity songs, accusing Turkish Airlines management in Nigeria of violating labour laws, victimising union members, and ignoring a National Industrial Court ruling ordering payment and reinstatement of the sacked executives.
NUATE General Secretary Sikiru Waheed, in a March 9 circular, decried the airline’s “flagrant disobedience” of Nigeria’s Constitution and Labour Act despite efforts to resolve intimidation and harassment cases.
The affected workers, dismissed in 2020 for union activities, have not received terminal benefits years later, according to union claims captured in chaotic videos from the scene.
NUATE said the protest became inevitable to compel compliance with the court order and respect for workers’ rights to unionise.
The action stranded passengers mid-process, highlighting ongoing labour tensions that previously led the Nigeria Labour Congress to shut down the airline in 2024 over the same dispute.
Union leaders vowed continued protests until Turkish Airlines reinstates the workers and honours Nigerian labour laws.
