Tags:
Journalism of Courage
It took a stay on their strike from the Delhi high court,a directive from the civil aviation ministry asking the Air India management to take strong,appropriate and decisive action,and the termination of the services of a few employees,for the two AI unions the Air Corporation Employees Union and Air India Aircraft Engineers Association to end their two-day-long harassment of passengers across the country and financial sabotage of the ailing airline,evoking memories of last September when AIs five-star workmen,its fabled pilots,had infamously struck work over pay cuts. Now,some may opine that the union leader as a manipulative rabble-rouser is a stereotype,concocted by the enemies of the workers of the world to discredit their struggle. Yet,an assessment of the conduct of the leaders of the two AI unions that went on the flash strike on Tuesday collapses again,as on innumerable occasions earlier,the stereotype into the real thing. Consider the fact that the 150-odd office-bearers of the two unions that grounded the trouble- and tragedy-struck airline are paid like employees while they do nothing but union work,enjoying near-unlimited free flights on AI.
Consider also that AI pilots repeat offenders who,for once,were not party to the strike and flight engineers are so highly paid as to ridicule their self-definition as workers. When such engineers join the AI ground and technical staff of the other union over a directive forbidding union leaders from speaking publicly about their grievances or about safety issues,is there any depth left for AI to fall? Immediately after Saturdays Mangalore crash,the Indian Commercial Pilots Association wasted no time in exploiting the tragedy to write to the prime minister apparently about AIs safety,but really about their competitors expat pilots.
