After a tense standoff that left hundreds of passengers stranded at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), striking workers have accepted a deal to return to their posts following a day-long protest.

However, while operations resume, the dispute over the government’s plan to lease the airport to India’s Adani Group remains unresolved.

The airport workers, who downed their tools on Wednesday, have not backed down from their opposition to the proposed 30-year takeover by Adani. During the negotiations, facilitated by the Ministry of Transport and union leaders, an agreement was reached for the workers to resume duties. 

However, workers were granted veto powers, allowing them to halt the controversial deal at any stage if their concerns are not addressed.

The Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) Secretary General, Francis Atwoli, who read the statement after the talks, made it clear that while work had resumed, the employees were not entirely satisfied with the government's position. 

Moss Ndiema, the Secretary General of the Kenya Airport Workers Union (KAWU) asserted that the return to work is not an agreement nor endorsement of the proposed take over of JKIA. 

"We have not stated that we accept the Adani deal," he asserted. 

He added, "We have been given vito powers for us to continue with deliberations."

Government representatives, including Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir and Transport Principal Secretary Mohammed Daghar, were present at the negotiations. They maintained that the government’s intentions were to improve the airport's infrastructure and service delivery, stating that private investment was essential to ease the current capacity constraints at JKIA.