AIESL to send re-employed staff on 'leave without pay" till Mar 31

Air India's engineering subsidiary AIESL has decided to send its re-employed staff on 'leave without pay" till March 31 amid its parent, Air India, suspending international operations from Sunday following the government's decision to bar overseas flights in or out of India for a week, a source said.

Air India accounts for as much as 90 per cent of Air India Engineering Services Ltd (AIESL), which is into aircraft and engine maintenance as well as component repair.

The source close to the development told PTI, that the engineering arm will also not be renewing the contract of these people after the completion of the existing ones.

"AIESL CEO has sought the list of personnel who are essential to sustain the current curtailed operations as the rest of the retired employees are to be sent on unpaid leave till March 31," the source said.

AIESL has around 5,000 workforce. Of these, as many as 286 are serving the company on contract after retirement from regular service.

With governments across the world imposing travel and visa restrictions due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection, the entire global aviation industry has been hit hard amid massive cancellations and rescheduling of flights.

This has also led to carriers laying off staff in huge numbers or sending them on leave without pay to help them stay afloat in such turbulent times.

"The AIESL management has also decided not the renew the contracts of these employees who have been inducted in the company after their retirement from the regular service once their existing contracts come to an end,' the source said.

The two domestic carriers IndiGo and GoAir have already initiated measures to reduce cost.

IndiGo CEO Ronojoy Datta has taken a 25 per cent cut and implemented the same for the rest of the employees, GoAir has sent its 35-50 per cent workforce on leave without pay for a months besides terminating the service contracts of high-cost expat pilots with the airline.