Air India has found major irregularities in the use of its leisure travel policy involving more than 4,000 employees, according to a PTI report. The airline has has initiated corrective steps, including penalties against those who violated the rules,
The loss making airline was taken over by the Tata Group in January 2022. Since then, the airline has been working on a major transformation plan while dealing with several challenges.
The large-scale discrepancies in the use of Air India’s Employee Leisure Travel (ELT) policy were detected after a detailed internal investigation. Air India has disciplined over 4,000 employees after an internal probe found widespread misuse of the Employee Leisure Travel policy, including fraudulent claims and resale of free tickets.
The ELT policy allows employees to get a limited number of free flight tickets for themselves and their nominees, including their spouse and parents, but these benefits are subject to certain conditions, news agency PTI reported.
Employees accused of misusing benefits
During the investigation, many employees were found to have misused the policy by listing people who were not actually their relatives in order to claim the benefits. Some employees were also reported to have taken the free tickets and sold them to others at higher prices,It said.
Air India did not respond to a detailed set of questions sent on Thursday seeking comments on the issue and the actions taken. News agency reported that more than 4,000 staff members were found to have violated the ELT policy. Some of the claims related to violations date back to the last financial year. However, the exact number of employees involved, the total financial loss due to the misuse, and the full time period of the violations could not be confirmed.
According to the news agency , Air India has begun taking corrective action. Employees involved have been asked to return the money they gained through fraudulent claims, and several staff members have also been given heavy penalties.
Questions raised over conduct and ethics
One source told the agency that the issue appears to involve failures at different levels and raises the “question of morality and conduct”.
The many employees who were found to have misused the policy had joined the airline after it was privatised. Following these fraudulent activities, Air India has tightened the rules for employees who want to use the ELT policy benefits, It said.
Under the policy, employees must submit details of their nominees along with proof of their relationship with them.Staff members are allowed a total of 14 passages or return flight tickets in a financial year. These can also include open-jaw tickets, which refer to booking a flight where the return journey starts from a different city than the original destination.
Financial Express has reached out to Air India regarding the matter. The story will be updated as and when we receive a response from their end.