Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Longer notice period clips wings of Go First pilots

Bengaluru: The Federation of Indian Pilots, in a letter to Union Minister of Civil Aviation Jyotiraditya Scindia, has raised concerns about its members being held to prolonged notice periods by Go First despite not being paid salary for April.

The debt-laden airline had filed for voluntary insolvency resolution proceedings on May 2, following which many of its pilots were offered jobs by other airlines. “The DGCA appears to have turned a blind eye towards airlines that continue to exploit pilots by making them work without pay or reduced pay. This is creating a very stressful environment that affects flight safety,” the letter read.  Go First is refusing to issue no objection certificates (NOC), experience certificates, no dues certificate and attestation of logbooks (in spite of it being a statutory requirement) to pilots who resigned earlier or more recently, the letter said. 

Pilots on the airline's rolls said it has been signing contracts with varying stipulations for notice period. The notice period in older contracts was matched to the DGCA mandate while in the newer ones, it is specified as six months. The new contracts also mention,”Presently, the DGCA CAR on a notice period of 6 months for pilots overrules the period stipulated by the company and if in future, the notice period approved by DGCA is increased, the notice period under this agreement shall stand increased to that extent.”

Pilots’ bodies, including the Society of Welfare of Indian Pilots and the Federation of Indian Pilots, had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court in 2018 challenging the DGCA order that stipulates a one-year notice period for commanders and six months for co-pilots. The court has temporarily set aside the mandate, directing the DGCA not to take any coercive action against pilots during this interim period. However, both pilots and employers are obligated to fulfil their contractual obligations.

16/05/2023 Lavpreet Kaur/Deccan Herald

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