The Entebbe International Airport Air Traffic Control Officers under their umbrella association Uganda Air Traffic Controllers Association (UGATCA) have yet again reiterated their call to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Management to honour a resolution to add them more allowances. Speaking during the Annual General Meeting (AGM) that was held at Lake Victoria Hotel Entebbe on Friday, Outgoing UGATCA president Paul Kalemba candidly revealed that for the last five years CAA Management has not fulfilled the promise after a resolution was passed in 2013 to give them their mandatory rating allowances which is for every rating added on the Air Traffic controllers license.
“We are calling upon CAA management to honour the resolution that was passed in 2013 that grants us our mandatory rating allowances. Other countries around Africa including neigbouring Kenya and Tanzania have already incorporated the rating allowances for the Air Traffic control officers, we don’t know why Uganda is still lagging behind. We have had several engagements with the Air Navigation Services Departmental Head, Director Human Resource and Administration, corporation Secretary and just recently we had a meeting with the Managing Director Dr. David Kakuba but there hasn’t been any positive response. We don’t want CAA Management to take our matters lightly”, Kalemba revealed.
Kalemba added;
We want CAA Management to begin valuing our services because we work under a lot of pressure and we have been given extra responsibilities. We want our services to be acknowledged. We have taken the matter to CAA Workers union but if they fail, we shall have to petition President Museveni to come to our rescue because we aren’t happy with the delay, enough is Enough. We would have threatened industrial action but internationally Air Traffic controllers aren’t allowed to go on strike. As an association we have done our bench mark with our countries in Africa and we agreed that a 15 percent pay rise would be a perfect start. The rating allowance we are demanding is for every rating added on the Air Traffic controllers license.
The acting CAA head Human Resource Rose Namukwaya revealed that the rating allowances is being processed and that by the end of February the increments will be made. She however attributed the delay to the failure on both the Air Traffic Controllers Association and CAA Management to produce a fully bench marked report from Tanzania.
Namukwaya noted that CAA Management only got a bench marked report from Kenya and that they are only left with Tanzania.
Meanwhile the Uganda Air Traffic Controllers Association Patron Capt. Mike Mukula hailed the Air Traffic control officers for their endurance and making Uganda the safest skies in the region. Capt. Mukula urged the Air Traffic officers to think strategically and work towards bringing East Africa and Africa together to have an integrated market and one regional Airline which will give East Africa and Africa a common force.
Capt. Mukula urged the incoming UGATCA President Ahumuza Arthur and his team to organize annual corporate social responsibility events in Entebbe (CSR) so as to create awareness of the vital role Air Traffic controllers play at Entebbe International Airport.
The Uganda Air Traffic Controllers Association was formed in 1981 and has a membership of 84 members. The association is mandated among others to ensure safety and efficiency in the Air space, maintain security and expeditiously handle Air Traffic. The Air Traffic controllers control three Aerodromes namely Entebbe, Gulu and Soroti.
