Rudy’s rocket for pilots’ strikes

Sources said the letter cites the recommendations of the Second National Labour Commission. The Commission had recommended that several ‘‘better off sections of employees’’ like airline pilots cannot be categorised as ordinary ‘‘workmen.’’

Removing them from this category, sources said, would mean that pilots and their representative bodies like the Indian Commercial Pilots Association—which gave a strike call during the SARS scare disrupting air traffic—will not be protected under the Act.

In the letter, the Civil Aviation Ministry while not mentioning the emoluments, suggests that ‘‘persons holding a valid licence under the Indian Aircraft Rules and engaged in public utility services like air transport may be excluded from the category of workmen.’’

The Ministry in an earlier note on the same issue had said that the monthly emoluments of pilots and flight engineers ranges from Rs 1,96,000 to Rs. 3,53,000 a month and it’s thus inappropriate for pilots to be considered ‘‘workmen.’’

Official sources said the Labour Ministry is likely to take a positive note of the suggestion and recommend the matter to the Law Ministry and then the Cabinet for a final decision.

There is a 1975 Supreme Court judgment which
places pilots in the category of workers and for that reason, sources say, the decision will have to be taken by the Cabinet. It will then require an ammendment to the Act from Parliament. One of the alternatives being considered by the Labour Ministry is to come out with a blanket order—also suggested by the Labour Commission—that employees with a monthly income over Rs 25,000 be automatically removed from the purview of the Industrial Disputes Act.

As of now, there is no income limit for those who have been categorised as ‘‘workmen.’’ In fact, the Act only places a ceiling of Rs 1,600 per month for those in the ‘‘supervisor’’ category. “So, you may be a supervisor drawing far less an income than pilots but still not be given the right to strike. A pilot, on the other hand, may be one of the highest paid and still retain this right. This defeats logic,’’ says an official.

Explaining the issue, a senior Labour Ministry official said being covered by the Act, pilots are protected against retrenchment and can strike work provided they give a six-week notice. Civil Aviation Ministry officials also pointed out that pilots in the recent past have been making demands beyond the usual issues—like non-payment of wages and working conditions—that concern workmen.