May 9th 2024.
On Thursday, sources revealed that the cabin crew of Air India Express has decided to end their strike and the airline has agreed to reinstate the 25 staff members who were previously terminated. This comes after a section of the cabin crew began reporting sick on Tuesday night, in protest of what they claim is mismanagement within the airline. This resulted in over 170 flights being cancelled and causing inconvenience for thousands of passengers at various airports.
The decision to end the strike and withdraw the termination letters was reached during a conciliation meeting between the representatives of the cabin crew and the airline management, held at the Office of the Chief Labour Commissioner in New Delhi. The meeting, which lasted for almost five hours, involved representatives from the Air India Express Employees Union and the airline management. The union is associated with the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, which is affiliated with the RSS.
After the meeting, Girish Chandra Arya, the All India Secretary of the BMS, announced that the 25 terminated cabin crew members will be reinstated. He also mentioned that both parties will hold a meeting again on May 28 to discuss and resolve any remaining issues. According to a document signed by the representatives of the union and the airline, after detailed discussions and persuasion from the Conciliation Officer and the Chief Labour Commissioner, the union representatives have agreed for all the cabin crew members who reported sick to immediately report for duty with a fitness certificate.
In addition, the management has agreed to review the cases of the 25 terminated cabin crew members, in accordance with the service regulations. The document also states that the representatives of the airline have assured to look into and resolve all the issues raised by the cabin crew during the conciliation proceedings.
Earlier in the day, the Tata Group airline announced that they have cancelled 85 flights, which is about 23% of their total operational capacity, due to a shortage of cabin crew. They will be operating 283 flights to minimize disruptions. To cope with the shortage, Air India is utilizing flights from Air India Express, which has curtailed its services till May 13.
Sources revealed that around 250 cabin crew members reported sick on Thursday. The previous day, the civil aviation ministry had asked for a report from Air India Express on the flight cancellations and urged the airline to resolve the issues promptly. Discontent among a section of the staff at Air India Express has been brewing since the merger process with AIX Connect, formerly AirAsia India, began. The cabin crew has raised concerns about mismanagement and unequal treatment of staff. A conciliation process is underway under the Industrial Disputes Act, after a union representing the cabin crew had filed a complaint with the labour department last year.
The striking cabin crew has raised issues such as room sharing, lack of proper support, revised salary structure, and alleged differential treatment of experienced crew members. In a message to the airline's staff, CEO Aloke Singh stated that over 100 cabin crew members had reported sick, just before their scheduled flight duty, causing severe disruptions in operations. He also mentioned that the disruptions have affected the entire network, leading to the cancellation of flights in the coming days. Singh assured that the company's leadership is available for discussions to address any concerns.
This strike by the Air India Express cabin crew comes just a month after Vistara, another Tata Group full-service carrier, experienced pilot woes, leading to a temporary reduction in capacity by 10% or 25-30 flights per day. As part of consolidating its airline business, Tata Group is merging Air India Express and AIX Connect, along with Vistara and Air India.
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