Pilots' union advises employees not to participate in Air India's strategic sale

The Indian Commercial Pilots' Association and the Indian Pilots' Guild, of which Air India pilots are a part, on Saturday advised members not to participate in the "strategic sale" of Air India till the issue of 'disproportionate' pay cut of pilots is addressed. The unions also said there is no clarity on the payment of the "illegally withheld" 25 per cent arrears due to the pilots to date whilst we approach the deadline of December 14 for submission of bids for Air India.
"While, other major airlines in India have revised the pay cut for its pilots, Air India being a government-owned public sector undertaking is yet to address the ordeal faced by us," the unions said in a statement.

The advisory was issued by the unions after Air India commercial director Meenakshi Malik sent a letter to all Air India permanent employees to participate in the process of employee bids in the strategic sale of the airline.

Malik had, in her letter, said that in order to acquire 51 per cent of the company, employees will have to make a financial contribution towards the total corpus. "Due to the support we will receive from our financial partner, while I anticipate that each of us will have to make a contribution of no more INR 1,00,000, to bid for the company," the letter said.