KUWAIT CITY, March 20: In a surprise turn of events, the Kuwait Airport Customs workers and Kuwait Airways worker have decided to suspend the strike in accordance with HH the Prime Minister’s wishes not to negotiate until the strike is lifted.

The Kuwait Airways strikers decided to suspend the strike action on a temporary and conditional basis, after a majority vote at a meeting Tuesday evening, which took place under the supervision of Union Chairman Abdullah Al Seif, Vice Chairman Marzouq Alshraifi, General Secretary Hussain Saleh, and union member Bilal Al Masa’eed.

The union issued a statement saying that the decision is conditional upon “the creation of an apparatus and a timed program by the Civil Service Council with regards to increasing the meetings concerning increase of salaries and wages in order to supply the council with our suggestions and visions for any future increases.”

Union members expressed their desire for cooperation and ensured their commitment to their national duties, and are awaiting the results as parliament takes up the issue on Thursday, putting an end to grounded flights after a further sixteen flights were cancelled on Tuesday. Starting Wednesday, flights will resume as per normal.

Insisting on a 30 percent pay raise, airline employees began their strike on Saturday, resulting in the cancellation of dozens of flights.

Customs service employees also announced that they have “suspended the strike to give the government a chance to fulfill their demands and out of national sentiment,” the Customs Workers Syndicate said in a separate statement.

Their strike, which started last week, had begun to affect the delivery of fresh produce. The price of fruit and vegetables has already risen by 15 percent, consumers say. 

Apparently, the strict procedures taken by the Cabinet ended the spate of labor strikes, which recently hit a number of government institutions.

Sources revealed the General Customs Administration Workers Syndicate announced earlier on Tuesday its plan to call off the strike, and then its KAC counterpart followed suit later. Sources said the KAC and Customs workers at Salmi and Nuwaiseeb borders, as well as the Shuwaikh Port, suspended their strike at dawn without consulting their unions, which both held their ordinary general assembly meetings in the evening to douse tension, especially since the protesters have realized their message has been conveyed clearly to the concerned authorities and the action has jeopardized national interests.

Meanwhile, HH the Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak presided over the meeting of the ministerial committee tasked to follow up the latest developments on the labor strikes, during which he affirmed his government is keen on taking decisive steps to confront any threat to the welfare of the nation and its people.

Addressing top officials of the institutions affected by the strikes, the premier asserted the government does not tolerate acts deemed harmful to the interests of Kuwait and its citizens. He clarified the government is keen on protecting the rights of workers in various public institutions, pointing out some of the protesters’ demands are legal. He said the concerned authorities should take into consideration the legitimate demands of the workers without harming the interests of the entire nation.

On the other hand, the retired Customs workers is said to have expressed their willingness to take the place of the protesters while the strike was ongoing. Chairperson of Kuwait Voluntary Work Center Sheikha Amthal Al-Ahmad, on behalf of the prime minister, thanked those who volunteered their services, disclosing the premier has received the list of volunteers.

In other news, a pilot contested the strike by illegally flying to Tehran on Tuesday, against the wishes of the KAC employees and against the law. MP Mohammed Al Dallal stated that “if the facts are verified concerning the ambiguity and illegality of the Kuwait Airway flight to Tehran, then the Minister of Transportation must open an emergency investigation and stop all law-breakers.”

The flight was stopped and returned before it could reach Tehran, but there have been no further details regarding the pilot in question or his motives.