Thaindian News

New Delhi, Sep 29 (IANS) Air India appears heading for more trouble with its ground staff planning to go on strike and junior pilots defending their seniors who have gone on mass leave in protest against the cut in the productivity linked incentives (PLI).
“The management seems to be worsening the situation,” said J.B. Kadian, general secretary of Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU), which has over 20,000 ground staff in its fold.

“They (the management) have already threatened to declare a lockout. Even though they have denied this, such a thing was never heard of earlier,” Kadian told IANS Tuesday, adding that ACEU too was now planning to join the pilot’s agitation.

“We are organising our members and apprising them about the situation. The CMD, (chairman and managing director Arvind Jadhav) is only worsening the situation,” he said.

The strike forced the carrier to cancel 50 flights Tuesday, including nine international flights.

However, Jadhav had told reporters Tuesday that the cash-strapped national carrier had lost over Rs.84 crore in the first three days of the strike. However, in a statement Monday night, he denied any possibility of a lockout in Air India.

Junior pilots of the airline also joined the fray Tuesday and criticised the management for cutting the PLI.

“Instead of looking at increasing revenue and adopting turnaround plan, the airline management has gone ahead cutting our wages, which is not accepted,” said R.S. Otal, an Air India pilot and former general secretary of the Indian Commercial Pilot’s Association.

“We morally support our senior executive pilots. The pilots are not at fault and are not responsible for the losses at the airline,” Otal told reporters here.