KOCHI: The cabin crew of Air India Express, which was recently acquired by Tata Sons, will go on an indefinite strike from Saturday as the talks held with the assistant labour commissioner failed to yield any results. The Air India Express Employees Union (AIXEU) gave a call for an indefinite strike as the management curtailed the contract period of the cabin crew from five years to one year.
The online meeting convened by assistant labour commissioner (central) Aneish Ravindra failed to yield results as the management refused to accept the demands raised by the union.
"The management refused to revise the contract period of the cabin crew," said AIXEU (BMS) president Vijaykumar KK. The commissioner has called for another round of conciliatory talks on Friday. We have not withdrawn our strike notice yet. If the management continues their adamant stand on Friday, the cabin crew of Air India Express across the country will go on an indefinite strike," he said.
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According to the cabin crew, the management has reduced their contract period from five years to one year, while other staff and new recruits have been provided a five-year contract.
"The management said that the contract will be revised by Tata Sons after the takeover. There is no guarantee on the statement as we haven’t received any official communication from Tata’s end," said a cabin crew member. “This injustice has been meted out to the cabin crew who were part of the Vande Bharat mission that repatriated thousands of Indians stranded abroad during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is unfortunate that the management is trying to retrench the cabin crew by reducing the contract period," said Vijayakumar.
Air India Express operates 86 flights per week from the state, both domestically and internationally. The strike will affect flight operations, causing inconvenience to passengers.
Air India Express chief of HR T Vijaykrishnan and deputy chief of HR Satish Nair represented the management in the talks. Air India Express Employees Union president KK Vijayakumar, state secretary KV Madhukumar and Public Sector Federation deputy general secretary (BMS) PK Sathyan attended the meeting.