A pilots' grouping of Tata group-owned Air India has approached the labour department to initiate conciliation proceedings with the airline's management to sort out various issues, including concerns over possible changes in service conditions of its members. The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA), which claims to represent around 900 pilots flying narrow-body planes of Air India, has written to the Chief Labour Commissioner (CLC) as well as Deputy CLC and Assistant Labour Commissioner in New Delhi earlier this week. Apart from service condition issues, the association has flagged that the airline's plans to hire captains for its A320 fleet on a fixed-term contract may result in an anomalous situation for the existing pilots at Air India.
Pilots working with Air India have warned of non-co-operation if restoration of pre-Covid overtime allowance is delayed, and if other practices they say are 'discriminatory' continues. "We cannot assure that our members will undertake flying duties exceeding 70 hours a month. Any coercive action by the management will lead to industrial action to safeguard flight safety and well-being of our members," the Indian Commercial Pilots Association and the Indian Pilots Guild said in a joint letter to Air India's management on Tuesday.
Aviation expert Captain Mohan Ranganathan claims human error led to the Air India plane crash and calls for more transparency in the AAIB's preliminary report.
Describing their situation akin to "bonded labour", two Air India pilot unions extended their support to Vistara pilots on Thursday, who have raised grievances regarding the duty roster and the revised salary structure. Amid the slew of flight cancellations and delays, Vistara chief executive officer Vinod Kannan acknowledged on Wednesday that pilot utilisation in the airline was high, and announced plans to scale back its flight schedule and overhaul the rostering system to provide pilots with more rest time.
In a letter to Executive Director (Operations) of Air India, ICPA General Secretary Captain S Sabu said that the political situation in Kabul has been deteriorating and that the NATO forces have launched a major offensive against insurgents in the region.
The two parties agreed further that no unilateral decision on cut in Productivity Linked Incentive would be taken. ICPA sources added that some suspended pilots would be reinstated.
Air India's CEO defends the fitness of pilots and aircraft after a preliminary report into the crash of flight AI171 raised questions. He urged against premature conclusions as the investigation continues.
The Indian Commercial Pilots Association decided not to resort to any industrial action as planned from May 10.
A pilots' union of Air India on Wednesday sought the response of the airline management on various issues, including alleged violation of the roster system and career progression policy. The Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA) also said that if there is no response in three days, it will be constrained to seek appropriate remedies in accordance with applicable law. In its letter on Wednesday, the grouping said, "we understand the management of Air India is contemplating certain changes to the conditions of service of the pilots".
Air India and Indian Airlines merged in 2007.
Air India pilots, who are up in arms against the airline's management's decision to unilaterally alter their salary structure and services conditions, on Tuesday sought Ratan Tata's intervention in resolving the issue. In a petition, signed by a little over 1,500 Air India pilots, the community alleged that the "pilots' concerns are not being heard or addressed by the current HR team". On April 17, Air India rolled out a revamped compensation structure for its pilots and cabin crew, which has since been rejected by the two pilot unions - Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) and Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) - on the grounds that the airline, in alleged violation of the labour practices, did not consult them before finalising the new contracts.
Two pilot unions at Air India have claimed that there is a shortage of pilots to operate the airline's long-haul and ultra-long haul flights. The concerns raised by the Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) and Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) also come against the backdrop of the Tatas-owned airline recently cancelling and rescheduling certain flights to and from the North American region due to crew shortage. In a joint letter written to Air India's chief human resources officer Suresh Dutt Tripathi on December 13, the unions said, "...we cannot maintain the printed planned roster due to a shortage of pilots, as CMS (crew management system) does not have standby pilots."
"Though the management has agreed to pay the pending arrears to ACEU, the other unions have not been paid yet," said a union member.
The Air India management has reached an agreement with pilots from the erstwhile Indian Airlines on the contentious issue of pay parity. Fearing another agitation from the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA), the airline's management has agreed to the union's demands for fixed allowances each month.
The Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA) defends the crew of the crashed AI 171 flight, rejecting insinuations of pilot suicide and calling for a fair investigation.
Air India has given more time to pilots to accept the revised compensation structure, which has been opposed by two pilot unions, according to a source. The decision to provide more time to pilots who are yet to sign the new contracts also comes days after Air India organised a town hall meeting with many pilots to discuss their concerns. The source said the airline has given time till the end of this week for signing the new contracts apparently due to requests from people who had not earlier accepted the revised compensation structure.
Air India chief Campbell Wilson on Friday said that a majority of pilots have accepted the new compensation package offered last week, amid protests by Air India pilots' unions against the revised salary structure and service conditions. The loss-making airline, which was taken over from the government by the Tata Group in January 2022, has announced a new compensation package for pilots and cabin crew. In his weekly message to Air India staff on Friday, Campbell said the airline is making investments in workplace technology and training as well as in new and improved employee benefits.
Two unions representing Air India pilots have asked members not to accept the revised compensation and employment offer, calling the company's proposals "unfair labour practices." They said any coercion on pilots to sign the offer would lead to industrial unrest. The Tata group airline announced on Monday a new salary structure for pilots and cabin crew.
Air India top brass on Thursday met leaders of two pilots' unions and assured them that their problems would be looked into, especially those relating to the wage structure.
Pilots' bodies at Tata Group-owned Air India have accused the airline management of making unilaterally "rapid" and "regressive" changes in the service conditions of pilots. In a letter to Air India Chief Human Resources Officer Suresh Dutt Tripathi on Tuesday, Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) and Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) also stated that "all unilateral violations of their rights and service agreements are creating industrial unrest and shattering employee confidence in the current management". The communication comes amid Air India reducing drastically the annual limit of privilege leave accumulation to 60 days from 300 days earlier, as per a source.
A joint forum of Air India unions on Friday sought the labour department's 'urgent' intervention and initiation of conciliation proceedings in the matter of their passage policy and service conditions. On December 24, the forum comprising IPG, ACEU, AIEU and AICCA, in its demand notice to Air India managing director and chief executive officer Campbell Wilson, had protested against the changes in their service conditions. Tata Group took control of the then government-led Air India in January this year.
The ICPA offices in Delhi and Mumbai have been sealed early this morning.
They alleged that while the salaries and perks of other employees are paid in full albeit with a delay, the same for the pilots and cabin crew are ignored
Divestment-bound Air India's pilot unions have rejected the paltry five per cent rollback in their salary cuts and warned of "industrial action" if there is no "substantial" reversal in their paycuts. In a joint letter to Air India chairman and managing director Rajiv Bansal on Thursday, the Indian Pilots' Guild (IPG) and the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) said, "(The) pittance in the form of a five per cent decrease in the current wage cut is an outright insult, its sting magnified in light of our unwavering support and trust in this company." They said this "generosity" amounts to a reduction of about 3 per cent in the current gross pay cut for pilots. In April, Air India had reduced its pilots' salary by up to 70 per cent to partially offset the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on its finances.
Air India pilot unions IPG and ICPA on Monday sought Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri's intervention on the wage cut issue and also requested for an "urgent" meeting with him on several other issues. "In our meetings in September, you had given us an assurance to look into our grievances positively. "While other airlines are rolling back the austerity pay cuts for their pilots, the wage cut for Air India pilots further increased from October.
Pilot groups have accused the AAIB of portraying the pilots as responsible for the incident, with vague and selective presentation of cockpit conversations.
In a letter to Air India Chairman and Managing Director Rajiv Bansal, the ICPA said, "In the press conference by Honourable Minister Shri Hardeep Singh Puri dated 16th July 2020, you had stated 'we are in negotiation with the pilots', which is far from reality." "It was not a negotiation, but the 'diktat' of the MoCA (ministry of civil aviation) which was conveyed to us. We would also like to place on record that the so-called negotiation was 'not harmonious' in any aspect," the Indian Commercial Pilots' Association (ICPA) noted.
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday said it would pronounce on Friday the verdict on the plea of a pilots' body of erstwhile domestic carrier Indian Airlines seeking parity with their counterparts in Air India.
Infighting among pilots might impact Air India's 787 flights
Trouble is again brewing in Air India ahead of the upcoming busy holiday season, with a section of pilots resenting a proposed 15 per cent cut in their allowances, saying such a reduction would place their pay packets below what was prevailing in the market.
President of Indian Commercial Pilots' Association Captain Shailendra Singh said the organisation reserves the right to appeal against the management's decision to suspend Captain Ranbir Arora and would decide on it after the probe being carried out by Delhi Police, Air India and the Directorate of General Civil Aviation is completed.
Apparently, the losses to the airline due to this scam are now running into crores of rupees.
Pilots working for Air India are divided on the call of a nationwide strike from March 9 by the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA), part of the erstwhile Indian Airlines, which has 680 members.
High Court, upon a petition filed by the airline, had asked the pilots to resume working by last Friday.
Five days after pilots called off their strike, Air India management has finally reinstated its 15 pilots who were suspended or sacked for participating in the 10-day long stir.
$3.6 billion worth of aircraft - by today's prices - are lying idle or are in hangers due to poor maintenance and management
As per the memorandum of settlement arrived at between the management and the ICPA in 2006, the pilots had agreed to fly up to 90 hours per month and 240 hours each quarter, the letter written by ICPA general secretary S Sabu on Wednesday said.
Air India CEO Campbell Wilson addresses the preliminary report on the Ahmedabad plane crash, stating no mechanical or maintenance issues were found with the aircraft. He urges against premature conclusions as the investigation continues.
"Under the contingency plan, we are operating 50 flights across the network today," an Air India official said. From Delhi, the national carrier will be operating just 10 flights and almost an equal number from Mumbai to metro cities.
A section of Air India pilots numbering about 800 decided to go on strike on demanding pay parity and better working conditions and their action is likely to cause disruption of flights of the state-owned carrier on Wednesday. According to Rishab Kapoor, the general secretary of the Indian Commercial Pilots Association, the pilots will go on strike from midnight on Tuesday.
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