Kenya Airways is set to lay off 38 staff members as phase two of right-sizing kicks off on Tuesday.
The move follows the decision the firm made in March last year when it announced a right sizing exercise through staff redundancies and redeployment that will affect over 500 staff
In the first phase, the firm let go of 80 staff members.
The company CEO Mbuvi Ngunze said that the retrenchment is in line with the “Operation Pride” to improve profitability and revisit the operating model and network.
“After implementation of Phase 1 of the restructuring process, we continued looking for opportunities for productivity and efficiency gains as well as upskilling within the business. After a lot of consultation the next phase of the process is now ready to be rolled out. There is never a perfect timing for such actions, and we will ensure that the process is handled within the values of our Airline,” Ngunze added.
Over the past one year KQ has continued to implement its turnaround strategy ‘Operation Pride’ amid making losses.
The troubled airline says Operation Pride focuses on closing the profitability gap, refocusing the business model as well as optimizing the capital structure of the company.
KQ reported operational profit for the first time in four years in its half year 2016/2017 results.
“The management,however, remains cognizant that this is a difficult period for Kenya Airways family and employee assistance will be available for affected staff. The process is in full compliance with labour law, Collective Bargaining Agreements and individual staff members’ contracts as appropriate,” Mbuvi noted.