Twenty Nigerian cabin crew
members were made redundant not too long ago by Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd.
Those laid-off have filed a
legal suit of N5billion against the Airline before the National Industrial
Court sitting in Lagos.
The Nigerian cabin crew,
through their counsel, Chief Felix Fagbohungbe, SAN, are asking the court to
restrain the airline from laying them off or giving effects to the notice of
termination of employment served on them pending the hearing and determination of
the suit.
They also wanted the court
to suspend the notice of termination of employment served on them pending the
hearing and determination of the substantive suit.
They are further asking the
court to direct the airline to pay them the sum of N5billion as damages for the
act of discrimination against them.
The 20 cabin crew, Genevieve Mordi, Umo Akinselure, Lukman
Yusuf, Ekaete Victor-Iyamu, Victoria Enyi, George Ezemba, James Ajayi, Rosemary
Ogbor, Babajide Akinyele, Remilekun Lashebikan, Yewande Salau, David Dagat,
Babafemi Oshifeko, Babatunde Olamuye, Juliet Ezumba, Rachel Ideho, Ademola
Olowolade, Imelda Blankson, Halimat Odeyemi and Tolumilade Sogbesan, are
contending that they were all laid off on November 30, 2015, following an
internal memo issued by the Executive Vice President, Customer, of the Airline,
Jill Brady.
In the memo, it was
disclosed that the provision of cultural expertise which was the primary
purpose of employing the claimants was no longer required by the Airline on its
Lagos-London route.
They further averred that
no survey was ever conducted by the Airline which revealed that the cultural
expertise provided by the claimants in respect of its Lagos-London route is no
longer required.
According to Vanguard, the
Airline’s intention to terminate their employment was based solely on their
race, colour and social extraction, even though the Lagos-London route was said
to be the most commercially viable and most profitable route for the Airline.
Vanguard
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