As many as 11 Air India flights delayed after senior pilots 'skip' work over union row

NEW DELHI: Several Air India flights were delayed after Senior Commanders of the airline "did not report to work".

The commanders are protesting an Air India order that bars commanders from being part of the union. Air India has about 650 commanders out of about 1,300 pilots in Air India.

As many as 11 Air India flights, including eight from Mumbai, were delayed, sources said. "A section of Air India is observing a go-slow since this morning, leading to delay in flights," sources said.

A total of 11 flights have been delayed so far -- eight from Mumbai and the remaining three from Delhi -- they added.

The Labour Ministry in an order had excluded airline commanders from the workmen category, effectively meaning that commanders can no longer form a union.

The Civil Aviation Ministry had earlier asked the Labour Ministry to remove pilots and engineers from the workmen category to prevent them from going on strike.

In the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, a non-workman is defined as an employee who is mainly in managerial or administrative capacity, or who draws wages exceeding Rs 10,000 per month.

With PTI inputs