Shape up or ship out: Air India's weight loss tip to staff

Taking cues from the central government’s weight-loss programme , state-run Air India is looking to cut some flab too.

A report in Mumbai Mirror says the airline’s airhostesses and stewards over the age of 40 need to appear for a medical fitness test before March 31 or face being grounded.

However, employees have refused to comply with the order as the airline has not provided the necessary infrastructure and health facilities to its staff, including the lapse of gym memberships for over a decade.

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The management’s move, which is aimed at those staff who are over 40 years of age and are now overweight and suffer from high blood pressure and diabetes, is seen as a ploy to get rid off some staff.

The company cannot sack them since they are government employees.

In spite of mounting losses, Air India is bursting at the seams with a high staff count, as it has been hiring as per the directives from the political bosses who run the government. The airline has the highest number of staff per aircraft.

Pressure to downsize the staff has been building up on the airline. Experts have criticised the government for using taxpayers’ money over and over again to save the airline.

Already a voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) is on the table to reduce manpower. About 7,000 employees are scheduled to retire from the airline over the next three years.

The VRS offer, in its current form, will apply to any who has served Air India for 15 years or is 40 years or above. The plan is to offer compensation for 35 days for each completed year of service and 25 days for each year of service which remains.

Scaling down the number of employees and cutting their pay packets form part of the turnaround plan of the loss-making airline. But will the staff union oblige?