20101224
reuters

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya Airways said it had averted a strike by some of its workers after the airline's union dropped demands to further backdate an agreed pay rise.

The Kenya Aviation and Allied Workers Union (AAWU) said in October that members working for the country's national carrier would go on strike if the airline did not backdate a payrise agreement reached in April 2010 to January 2009.

Under the original agreement the extra money was to be backdated to October 2009, at a cost of 129 million shillings.

Kenya Airways said the AAWU's demand was unrealistic and illegal and would have cost an additional 325 million shillings.

"The discussions we had ... conclusively addressed all the contentious issues that the union had raised as the reason for the strike notice in October this year," Kenya Airways said in a statement.

"This signifies the end of all the issues raised by the union at that time. This means that the effective date of the Clause J allowances remains October 2009," Kenya Airways said.