Home India News Indian Airlines staff calls off agitation

Indian Airlines staff calls off agitation

By IANS

New Delhi : The two-day strike by some 12,000 staff of the state-run Indian Airlines, which disrupted air travel across the country and left thousands of passengers stranded, was called off Thursday after the management agreed to meet most of the employees' demands.

"A union team had talks with the government and the management in the afternoon. And as they agreed to meet most of our demands, we have withdrawn our strike," said Hari Singh of the Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU).

"We have asked the striking employees to return to work soon," said the office bearer of ACEU, which demanded wage revisions and promotional parity with Air India counterparts following the government's nod to merge the two carriers.

The Delhi High Court had held the strike illegal late Wednesday.

Civil Aviation Secretary Ashok Chawla and senior officials of the airline met with representatives of the ACEU in the morning to hammer out pending issues and reached an agreement on wages.

"Some minor issues of career progression have also been settled," Chawla told reporters later.

"The wage arrears of Rs.267 crores (Rs.2.67 billion) to be paid to the employees have been agreed. It will be paid in 18 months," a ministry statement said.

The flight schedule of the airline is expected to turn normal soon, the ministry said, adding: "Indian Airlines is informing all the passengers accordingly." The suspension of 23 striking employees will also be reviewed.

Earlier in the day, the airline, which operates under the brand name 'Indian', was forced to cancel 103 flights, resulting in chaos at airports across the country and leaving thousands of passengers scrambling for private carriers.

Budget carriers like Air Deccan and SpiceJet reported higher passenger bookings because of the strike by the staff of Indian Airlines strike, which has already seen its market share drop to the third place with 21 percent from being the sole domestic operator about a decade ago.

Among the flights cancelled were those running on international routes between sectors like Chennai and Singapore, Bangkok and Sharjah, and Kolkata and Bangkok. The estimates of losses were not immediately available, Chawla said.

About 12,000 ground staff of the carrier, including security personnel and baggage handlers, had been on strike since Tuesday night demanding pay hikes and payment of arrears that they claimed had been pending since 1997.

The airline employs nearly 20,000 people.

Cabin crews had joined the agitation Wednesday, leading to a complete breakdown in services, even as Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel issued a stern warning and threatened protesting staff with large-scale suspensions.

Indian daily ferries 31,000 passengers to 54 destinations in India and 18 overseas. On Wednesday, the ongoing strike had forced authorities to cancel 62 flights across the country.