Air Peace is not the only victim of the ripple effect of the Coronavirus

August 4, 2020 Editor Ripple 0

In June, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that 12 million people under 40 lost their jobs and reported a decrease in income due to the global pandemic caused by the coronavirus.  The coronavirus pandemic has undoubtedly had a negative effect on many businesses in Nigeria and across the world. From businesses shutting down to retrenchment of workers, salaries, and pay cuts, this period has recorded a decline in the growth of many businesses as well as the springing up of many other business ideas. In Nigeria, the ripple effects of the outbreak have also been felt across many sectors of the economy.

In May, there were reports of some financial institutions laying off workers, and the reason to blame for this, according to these firms, is the ripple effects of the coronavirus.

Recently, foremost Nigerian Airline, Air Peace has sacked about 70 pilots and implemented pay cuts ranging from one percent to 40 percent in a bid that terminated some of its pilots’ contracts across its fleet. According to a statement issued by the spokesperson, Stanley Olisa, the management of the airline linked the disengagement of the pilots’ contracts to the ‘devastating impact of COVID-19 pandemic.’

Air Peace, however, is not the first business to have laid off some of its staff as there have also been other reported cases of businesses doing the same or even shutting down operations in Nigeria entirely: a few weeks ago, multinational retailer, Mr. Price shut down its operations in Nigeria on the basis of the ripple effects of the coronavirus.

That said, the Air Peace situation has garnered attention on social media. Some Nigerians are reminding the federal government of how Air Peace has successfully come through for Nigeria in the past during the times of need. Essentially, they are calling on the government to do the same for Air Peace now that the airline is feeling the devastating impact of COVID-19 pandemic.

For the context of their plea, Air Peace was the sole Nigerian Airline that offered her services to Nigerians amidst  xenophobic attacks in South Africa. The airline dedicated fleets to evacuate Nigerians stranded in South Africa who wanted to return home when the xenophobic attacks in South Africa spiked to the violent loss of lives.

While the plea may sound valid, it would be interesting to also note Air Peace is certainly not the only airline that is facing challenges in airline industry following the outbreak of coronavirus. For other airlines who are facing similar challenges, measures were adopted to attract more patronage during these times, slashing the prices of air tickets to stay afloat.

Every business has been affected by the pandemic one way or another. If nothing else, businesses should liaise with one another in this period to come up with solutions that would help them thrive in this period.