Pilots' union seeks meeting with Ravi ahead of strike

MUMBAI: Maintaining that it would cooperate with the management in the ongoing evacuation of the Indians from Libya, pilots' union of Air India today sought a meeting with Civil Aviation Minister Vayalar Ravi to explain the reasons for striking work on March 9, sources said.

"We request you to grant us 15 minutes to explain to you how the present CMD is jeopardising the future of the airline and has brought down the morale of the employees to an all time low, leaving us with no other option but to go on strike," Indian Commercial Pilots Association ( ICPA) letter to Ravi said.

The ICPA would extend cooperation in evacuating Indian nationals from Libya or any other country affected by conflict even if the pilots are on strike, the letter said.

The ICPA letter to Ravi comes in the backdrop of its talks with the management having failed yesterday.

The Central Executive Committee ( CEC) members of ICPA, which represents pilots of erstwhile Indian Airlines, met the management which tried to convince them to take back their strike notice saying evacuation of Indians from Libya would be affected.

The ICPA has served a 14-day strike notice, under Section 22 of the Industrial Disputes Act to airline CMD Arvind Jadhav, charging the management with having failed to address their grievances and violation of agreements on issues like pay parity and better working conditions.

"Various dates and deadlines have come and gone and the management has failed to keep its promises and assurances. As a result, the erstwhile Indian Airlines' pilots have been incurring heavy financial losses," the union said.