NEW DELHI: Air India pilots have rejected the new pay structure finalised for them by the airline. The main bone of contention is that under the new structure, they are assured of 40 hours of flying allowance every month — down from 70 hours in pre-pandemic times. The two unions — Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) of erstwhile Indian Airlines and Indian Pilots Guild (IPG) of erstwhile Air India have warned of “industrial unrest” if the new terms are imposed on them.
“These terms and conditions are not acceptable to us, and we will contest this travesty using any and all avenues available to us.
Our member pilots will not sign this unilateral revised terms of employment and compensation. Any coercive steps or victimisation by the company against our member pilots to sign these draconian terms and compensation will lead to industrial unrest,” a joint statement by the two unions says.“The term cost to the company for an assumed flying of 70 hours is deliberately misleading and creates an impression of a generous compensation and accompanying benefits package. The actual guaranteed money being offered is only for 40 hours.
Effectively, any time a pilot is on leave or is unavailable due to recurrent training requirements or document/licence renewals not to mention any sick leave, there is an automatic pay cut involved. The so called rationalisations of allowances is not in line with any industry practices as projected by HR,” it says.
AI had this Monday announced a new pay structure for crew members. “In line with our vision Vihaan.AI to become a world class airline, Air India recognises the contribution and commitment of its employees. We have redesigned the compensation of flying staff to make our compensation structure simplified, market-competitive and productivity oriented. With our fleet expansion and ambitious growth plans, our flying staff would get an opportunity to significantly increase their earnings through more flying and wider career options,” AI’s chief human resources officer Suresh Dutt Tripathi had said in a staff notification while announcing the new pay structure.
However, pilots are not happy with the new package, especially the 40-hour assured flying allowance. “The implications of what the management is expecting pilots to agree to (include): the company want(ing) to completely absolve itself from the responsibility of providing pilots with a stable roster around which we can plan our lives. As per company ‘requirement’ and in the name of ‘business exigency’, pilots are now expected to be on call 24×7, effectively on a perpetual standby. So any family/social commitments or semblance of a work/life balance that pilots may want is now irrelevant,” the joint representation of the pilots’ unions says.
“These terms and conditions are not acceptable to us, and we will contest this travesty using any and all avenues available to us.
Our member pilots will not sign this unilateral revised terms of employment and compensation. Any coercive steps or victimisation by the company against our member pilots to sign these draconian terms and compensation will lead to industrial unrest,” a joint statement by the two unions says.“The term cost to the company for an assumed flying of 70 hours is deliberately misleading and creates an impression of a generous compensation and accompanying benefits package. The actual guaranteed money being offered is only for 40 hours.
Effectively, any time a pilot is on leave or is unavailable due to recurrent training requirements or document/licence renewals not to mention any sick leave, there is an automatic pay cut involved. The so called rationalisations of allowances is not in line with any industry practices as projected by HR,” it says.
AI had this Monday announced a new pay structure for crew members. “In line with our vision Vihaan.AI to become a world class airline, Air India recognises the contribution and commitment of its employees. We have redesigned the compensation of flying staff to make our compensation structure simplified, market-competitive and productivity oriented. With our fleet expansion and ambitious growth plans, our flying staff would get an opportunity to significantly increase their earnings through more flying and wider career options,” AI’s chief human resources officer Suresh Dutt Tripathi had said in a staff notification while announcing the new pay structure.
However, pilots are not happy with the new package, especially the 40-hour assured flying allowance. “The implications of what the management is expecting pilots to agree to (include): the company want(ing) to completely absolve itself from the responsibility of providing pilots with a stable roster around which we can plan our lives. As per company ‘requirement’ and in the name of ‘business exigency’, pilots are now expected to be on call 24×7, effectively on a perpetual standby. So any family/social commitments or semblance of a work/life balance that pilots may want is now irrelevant,” the joint representation of the pilots’ unions says.
