The Hindu Business Line : No retrenchment, only leave without pay for AI staff

Air India feels that with the retirement of staff in the normal course and with the Voluntary scheme, it will not have to take any worker unfriendly steps.

Our Bureau

Hyderabad, Oct. 16 The state-owned Air India will not retrench any workers but could come up with a Voluntary Leave Scheme, which will allow its employees to go on leave without pay for between three and five years.

A senior airline official said that the proposal, which is being considered at the top echelons, is yet to be considered by the Board. “There is no question of any staff being retrenched. We may offer a voluntary scheme to about 15,000 staff who are eligible for it. We will have to see how many accept it,” a senior airline official said.

The Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Raghu Menon, confirmed that such a move is being considered without giving any details. The airline feels that with the retirement of staff in the normal course and with the Voluntary scheme, it will not have to take any worker unfriendly steps.

Officials said it was still too early to estimate the saving that the airline will have by implementing the Voluntary scheme.

Addressing the media at the ongoing ‘India Aviation 2008,’ the Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Praful Patel, categorically stated that there will not be any retrenchment in Air India.

In the last few days Jet Airways has been seeing unrest among its staff after the airline was forced to shed it staff as a result of the slow down in the industry. The airline plans to terminate the duties of close to 1,900 staff members soon. The move comes in the wake of the airline cutting back on several international and domestic flights and its decision to return some of the aircraft currently in the fleet.

In the domestic aviation industry, wage bill is the second most important cost head after fuel.

MRO facility

Meanwhile, Air India has signed a memorandum of understanding with the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) for creation of four Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul Facility.

Addressing a press conference, the Executive Director, Corporate Communication, Mr Jitendra Bhargava, said that the 50:50 joint venture will have an investment of $40 million over five years. “The investment will actually be much more than $40 million if the investment made in land, hangar and other infrastructure is taken into account. The MRO will look after four businesses including airlines, engines, components and another for Airbus. The facility will come up near Delhi and start operations in 2009,” Mr Bhargava said.

Air India is also in talks with Boeing for setting up another, he added.

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