The Employment and Labour Relations Court in Nairobi has temporarily stopped a nationwide aviation strike that had been planned for Friday, July 24, after employers moved to court to challenge the industrial action.
In orders issued on Thursday, July 23, the court prohibited the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU), its officials, members and affected employees from calling, encouraging or taking part in the strike until the matter is heard and determined.
“Pending inter partes hearing and determination of the application interim order of injunction is hereby issued restraining respondent, its officials, members, servants, agents and/or any person acting under its authority from calling, implementing enforcing, promoting, participating in or in any way giving effect to the strike or industrial action contemplated in the strike notice dated 20th July 2026,” read a court document obtained by this publication.
Before the ruling, KAWU had maintained that the industrial action would go on as planned unless a deal was reached with employers before Friday.
The strike was expected to involve employees from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), local and international airlines, as well as ground handling firms, following a strike notice issued by the union on July 20.
According to KAWU, the action was prompted by unsuccessful negotiations over long-standing labour disputes, including delays in concluding a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with KCAA, which the union says has remained pending since 2015.
The union also complained about the absence of salary reviews for some employees and raised concerns over human resource policies affecting workers in the aviation sector.
It further questioned the deployment of National Youth Service (NYS) officers at various airports, arguing that the move could interfere with the responsibilities of aviation personnel.
Employers, through separate court applications, sought orders stopping the strike, arguing that the planned action risked disrupting aviation services nationwide.
The court certified the applications as urgent and granted interim orders suspending the strike until the cases are heard.
KAWU has now been directed to file its responses before the matters proceed to inter partes hearings.
The ruling comes after passengers had been preparing for possible flight delays and disruptions at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) and other airports across the country.
By the time of publication, airport workers had not responded to the court's decision or indicated whether they would comply with the orders or pursue the planned strike.
