Faced with a number of human resource (HR) issues, which are expected to balloon further when the justice Dharmadhikari recommendations come in force, the cash-strapped Air India (AI) is planning a series of non-monetary incentives including foreign posting, extension of services after retirement, etc, to woo employees.
?The incentives would be linked to performance. For instance, if some employees have performed well and are about to retire, we will consider extending their services for another two-three years. Similarly, for younger staff, we will have more foreign posting options,? said an AI official.
The measures, recommended by the justice Dharmadhikari Committee, seem to be the need of the hour for the airline which has drawn a lot of flak from its employees for poor management and failed integration of erstwhile AI and Indian Airlines? personnel. Some sections of the company have already opposed the committee?s suggestions to do away with the productivity-linked incentives (PLI) and merging it with the basic salaries as per the department of public enterprises? (DPE) guidelines.
?The issue is that we cannot offer cash. The monetary benefits can be offered only after the carrier turns around, which may take five-six years. There is a lot of discontent among the employees, these measures will encourage employees to continue performing well and better,? the official said.
AI has about 27,000 employees and an annual wage bill of about R3,000 crore. The carrier is aiming at an immediate reduction of R250 crore in the wage bill after the implementation of the report.
The aviation minister had recently announced that the pay-parity report was ready and a four-member core committee was set up to look into the implementation of the recommendations. The committee members held their first meeting on Thursday.
Even as the carrier is trying hard to avoid opposition from the employees, especially once the recommendations begin to be executed, it is yet to resolve its long-pending strike by the 400-plus members of the Indian Pilots? Guild (IPG). The stalemate continues even after one and a half months between the pilots and management as both parties refuse to buzz from their stands.