OSSC employees stage sit-in

KUWAIT CITY, April 16: Employees of the Oil Sector Service Company (OSSC) will continue holding protest actions until their demands are met, says Chairman of OSSC Workers Syndicate Saad Al-Khaneen.

Al-Khaneen made the statement Tuesday when the OSSC workers staged a strike in front of the company’s headquarters in Salhiya. He claimed the administration of the company does not listen to the employees and it has adopted the policy of threats in dealing with the protesters. He stressed the workers will hold a series of protest actions in the coming days, unless HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber AlMubarak interferes to address the legal demands of the employees who will not succumb to pressure from any party.

Meanwhile, member of the syndicate Mohammed Al-Hajeri revealed another protest will be held next Tuesday to be followed by a general strike involving all workers, including those assigned in refineries, oilfields and even the administrative buildings. He said the employees have tried to negotiate with the concerned company officials but the latter allegedly closed their doors and refused to listen to the workers.

Moreover, Chairman of the Petroleum and Petrochemical Industry Workers Union Abdulaziz Al-Sharthan asserted the strike organized by the OSSC employees on Tuesday was legal as it did not lead to financial losses.

Speaking to the press while participating in the protest action, Al-Sharthan said negotiation with the employees is the most appropriate solution to the problem. He added HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and HH the Prime Minister had earlier received a delegation from the syndicate and they listened to a detailed explanation on the issue, so the workers were surprised when the OSSC officials refused to take a similar action.

In a related development, Deputy Chairman of the Workers Syndicate in Kuwait National Petroleum Corporation (KNPC) Mohammed Al-Hamlan confirmed that several KNPC employees staged a strike in front of the headquarters of the Oil Workers Union in Ahmadi on the same day. He disclosed the protesters held the oil minister responsible for the chaos in the sector.

Al-Hamlan warned Kuwait will incur losses amounting to $220 million if the strike continues, in addition to the possibility of losing one million barrels of refined oil once the workers decide to halt operations. He said another strike will be held on Thursday with the expected participation of around 3,000 of the 6,000 employees in the corporation.

On the other hand, Spokesperson and Manager of the Public and Media Relations Department at KNPC Eng Mohammed AlAjmi affirmed the corporation has a contingency plan to guarantee normal operations in the refineries in case the workers go on strike on Wednesday. He said the plan covers the petrol stations to prevent any shortage in production or petroleum products, stressing the local market will not be affected by the strike.

Al-Ajmi asserted the corporation spares no effort in granting privileges to the workers. He explained the restructuring of KNPC has given several employees a chance to advance in their positions, while some have been appointed to senior posts.

Al-Nisf put forward his vision for Kuwait Airways to be at par with other world-class major airline corporations across the globe by modernising its fleet. “With our ageing fleet, we are losing a lot of money for fuel and maintenance. If we don’t modernise and buy new aircraft then we continue to incur huge losses. We’ll be acquiring new aircraft on a gradual basis,” he explained as they still have to await the turn-over of KD250 million allocated by the government to them to be used for its modernisation programme.

“The allotted KD 250 million for the company’s capital would not cover the cost of buying new aircraft since KD 200 million will be used to pay outstanding debts and the remaining KD 50 million will not be adequate to buy new airplanes,” he clarified. He informed that IATA has won a contract to restructure Kuwait Airways Corporation and they will follow IATA’s advice to implement reforms in the corporation’s operations to maximise the corporation’s profitability.

Compete

He admitted that there a number of things that have to be done for Kuwait Airways to be able to compete with other airline companies in the region and across the globe. “We hope to acquire a reasonable number of new aircraft that will take passengers to numerous destinations. By modernising our fleet, we prevent the loss of public’s money as they will consider Kuwait Airways as their preferred airline. With the modern fleet, travel is made easy to and from Kuwait that would propel Kuwait as a financial hub. This is our vision to make Kuwait Airways the best in the region and the world,” he stressed.

Joining him during the press conference were Kuwait Airways Chief Executive Officer Capt Ahmed AlKreebani, Director of PR and Information Khaled Al-Khulaifi and other Kuwait Airways executives.

Earlier that day, members of the local press were given a tour in the various divisions of Kuwait Airways to give them an overview of the Kuwait Airways operations. “Welcome to the Integrated Operation Control System where you get to see all the aircraft movement as we monitor the departure and arrival of Kuwait Airways aircraft in various parts of the world. Once there is a delay in the flight, we inform immediately the airline authorities,” explained Capt Ahmed Saad Al Nahedh, the Director of the Operations Division. He informed that Kuwait Airways has 17 aircraft with 386 pilots and 36 of them have retired bringing the total number of pilots to 350. “Ninety per cent of our pilots are Kuwaiti citizens,” he informed.

The media were then led to the hangar area where Kuwait Airways aircraft is fixed and has to undergo maintenance.”We fixed the aircraft for various reasons but the most of the common problems are the hydraulic and fuel leak,” disclosed Assistant Director of the Engineering and Maintenance Division Hamad Ghazzay Al-Otaibi. He outlined that normally an aircraft has to undergo maintenance after 500 flying hours or approximately 45 days of flying. “This is to ensure the safety of the aircraft,” he stressed.

To give the media a glimpse of the airline catering, Kuwait Aviation Services Company (KASCO) Executive Director for Projects Abdulaziz Al-Bloushi accompanied them inside the KASCO kitchen as he explained to them on how the meals are prepared and dispatched to the aircraft to be served to the passengers on board. “We make it sure that we adopt and maintain the highest food standards in the preparation of food from the purchase of food, cooking and distribution to the aircraft,” he explained.

Meanwhile, KASCO Executive Chef Thomas Harker informed the media that they usually prepare an average of 25,000 meals daily but the number may go up to over 30,000 depending on the peak season for travelers. “We’re all set for the summer season where we expect an influx of travelers,” he stated.