Why Air India wants to remove pilots, engineers from workmen category

The civil aviation ministry has sought an amendment to the Industrial Disputes Act 1947 to end the protection granted to pilots and aircraft engineers under the prevailing labour laws.

The proposal has been mooted at the behest of Air India, which continues to be in precarious financial health despite Rs 17,000 crore equity infusion under the turnaround plan.

The airline faces increased competition and the prospect of losing its market share further.

At the same time, Air India management finds its hands and feet tied as changing service conditions isn't easy as long as employees enjoy the protection of labour laws. Even enforcing Directorate General of Civil Aviation's stipulated duty hours for pilots and cabin crew has been difficult.

It is in this context that Air India has requested the civil aviation ministry to push for amendment to the Industrial Dispute Act and remove pilots and aircraft engineers from the categories of workmen under the act.

In 2013, the labour ministry had turned down a similar request, citing that pilots and engineers' job is technical in nature and hence they can not be removed from workmen category. Now Air India has suggested that senior pilots and engineers perform a supervisory role and can be excluded from definition of workmen.

Incidentally, the proposal to amend the law is being initiated when Air India is facing a challenge in the Supreme Court for slashing employee salary by 25% without following the laid down procedure of serving notice to unions.

But changing the regulations will not be easy. Pilots and engineers will oppose the move to exclude them from workmen category.

"We will write to the labour ministry to convey our views. World over pilots have labour unions. Why then such a move to target us. Instead of solving our problems the Air India management seeks to curtail our rights," said Captain Praveen Keerthi, general secretary of Indian Commercial Pilots Association.

"I feel the move could be a precursor to the privatisation of Air India," said a member of Indian Pilots Guild.

Pilots contend that blaming employees and the wage bill for the airline's losses is unfair. Air India has accumulated losses of over Rs 30,000 crore and by reducing salaries by 25%, the airline will save Rs 250 crore a year. "What then has contributed to such high losses," pilots ask.

"It appears that the government plans to take away protection of labour laws which pilots and engineers enjoy. It is not so much about the right to strike as it is made out," remarked an advocate who specialises in labour matters.

Once pilots and engineers are excluded from workmen category, the airline can change their service conditions without issuing a notice as prescribed under law. These employees will not be able to approach labour commissioner or an industrial tribunal in case management refuses to accept their charter of demands. Similarly sacked employees (who are not workmen as defined in law) cannot appeal to the labour commissioner or tribunals and can only seek redressal in civil courts.