The technicians of Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL) have served a strike notice to the management, threatening to go on strike on April 23.
The All-India Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Union has sent a letter to AIESL CEO and Chief Human Resource Officer threatening disruption to operations if management fails to address their concerns.
The union is accusing the management of neglecting their concerns and grievances. The strike notice alleges gross discrimination against the fixed-term employees (FTEs), saying they are frustrated and demoralised due to a halt in promotions for seven years.
“This lack of career advancement opportunities has created a sense of stagnation and discontent among employees,” the union states in its notice dated April 8.
The technicians allege a glaring disparity between permanent and contractual staff on notice periods, salary revisions and uniforms, among other issues.
“The abrupt change in notice period from one month to three months for technicians and six months for certifying staff has created confusion, rage and anger among employees… Disparity in the colour of uniforms has created a sense of division where FTEs feel insecure, undervalued and marginalised,” the employee union wrote.
AIESL, formerly a subsidiary of Air India, was transferred to a holding company after privatisation.
ALSO READ: Former SpiceJet chief Arun Kashyap launches private charter carrier Sirius India Airlines
The company maintains and repairs aircraft at eight of its hangars across India. The maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) giant has about 5,000 employees, of which 75% are believed to be FTEs or contractual staff.
The government is planning to privatise the subsidiary but has yet to initiate the divestment process.
