Indian flights disrupted due to employees strike
Flights in India were seriously disrupted Wednesday with thousands of baggage handlers, check-in staff and other employees of Indian were on strike.
By Agencies |
NEW DELHI: Flights in India were seriously disrupted Wednesday with thousands of baggage handlers, check-in staff and other employees of Indian were on strike. Workers began an indefinite work stoppage late Tuesday to demand an increase in wages and better career prospects after talks with management failed, a union official told media.
Flights were operating Wednesday but with serious delays. "No one is ready to tell us when the flight will take off or whether it will take off at all or not," Majid, a passenger, told a news channel in New Delhi. "For them to get the steps after the plane landed, half an hour was spent there itself," another passenger told the channel.
J K Badola, a union official, earlier told media the strike was affecting flights across India - including the western financial hub of Mumbai, the southern tech city of Bangalore and the eastern metropolis of Kolkata.
Indian has called the strike by ground staff represented by the Air Corporation Employees' Union "illegal," media said.
The airline operates mostly on domestic routes but does fly to a few international destinations in Southeast Asia and the Gulf.
In February, the government approved a plan to merge Indian Airlines with Air India, the international flagship, in a bid to compete better in India's booming aviation sector. According to recent estimates, Indian Airlines - once the country's sole domestic carrier - has dropped to third place with 21.5 per cent of the market.
Flights were operating Wednesday but with serious delays. "No one is ready to tell us when the flight will take off or whether it will take off at all or not," Majid, a passenger, told a news channel in New Delhi. "For them to get the steps after the plane landed, half an hour was spent there itself," another passenger told the channel.
J K Badola, a union official, earlier told media the strike was affecting flights across India - including the western financial hub of Mumbai, the southern tech city of Bangalore and the eastern metropolis of Kolkata.
Indian has called the strike by ground staff represented by the Air Corporation Employees' Union "illegal," media said.
The airline operates mostly on domestic routes but does fly to a few international destinations in Southeast Asia and the Gulf.
In February, the government approved a plan to merge Indian Airlines with Air India, the international flagship, in a bid to compete better in India's booming aviation sector. According to recent estimates, Indian Airlines - once the country's sole domestic carrier - has dropped to third place with 21.5 per cent of the market.
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