Air India recently announced that its board of directors have approved a furlough scheme for its permanent employees for a period of six months to two years which is extendable to up to five years as a measure to cut costs during the Pandemic.
In a notice addressed to its staff, Air India said, “Board of Directors in its 102nd meeting held on 7th July 2020 has approved a Scheme whereby employees can opt to take Leave Without Pay ranging from six months or for two years and the same can be extendable upto five years”.
And added, “This Scheme is being introduced for grant of leave without pay & allowances for permanent- employees, for a period of six months or for a period of two years (extendable upto 5 years) at the discretion of the Management”.
The Scheme gives legitimate authority to the airline’s chairman and managing director to pass an order whereby an employee could be sent on leave for six months or for a period of two years extendable up to five years, depending upon factors like suitability, efficiency, competence, quality of performance, the health of the employee, redundancy, etc. Also, Air India’s regional heads and departmental leaders have been asked to prepare a list of employees who are to be compulsorily furloughed by 15 August.
According to Rating Agency Crisil’s Wednesday report, “Indian airlines are staring at a revenue loss of Rs 1.3 trillion between fiscal 2020 and 2022 due to the ongoing pandemic that has severely hit demand. Airlines are also unlikely to recoup from this loss and bounce back to pre-pandemic levels of double-digit growth at least in the medium term”.