AAI employees may go on strike from May 1

In a move that would have a major impact on flight services across the country, around 15,000 employees of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) are planning to go on an indefinite countrywide strike from May 1.

The major point of contention is the "forceful" transfer of employees from privately-operated Mumbai and Delhi airports to other airports. Mumbai airport is operated by the GVK-led consortium Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) and the Delhi airport is operated by the GMR-led Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL).

Of the about 4,000 AAI employees at Delhi and Mumbai, around 3,000 have declined to join the consortia as had been proposed at the time of the privatisation of the airport. The reason, according to AAI employees, is that the private companies are not offering any kind of job security.

According to sources, the rest 1,000 are either accepting transfer or VRS schemes offered to them. Both airports were privatised in 2006.

"We will go on an indefinite strike from May 1. Apart from the forceful transfer, there are other issues of pension schemes. Also, the tripartite committee that was formed to resolve our issues has not come to any resolution yet," said MK Ghoshal, General Secretary, Airports Authority Employees Union (AAEU), told Business Standard.