Air India Express has started firing those crew members who had taken leave citing illness on Tuesday night, due to which more than 80 flights of Air India Express had to be cancelled.
‘Your services are terminated immediately’
Air India Express has sent termination letters to the crew members who were on sick leave on Wednesday. People having knowledge of the matter said that termination letters have been sent to remove about 25 people from their jobs. In the letter, the airline wrote that your name was in the roster on May 7, however, you told the schedule team at the last moment that you were ill, and at the same time many other crew members also took leave citing illness and did not perform their duties.
The airline said that ‘we received information about a large number of crew members falling ill in the last moments. This clearly points to a premeditated and concerted absence without any valid reason.
The airline wrote in the termination letter – ‘Your action of informing us of being sick for work is a very strict step as per common sense. Non-operation of flights and disruption of company services. This is not only in violation of applicable laws, but also in violation of the Air India Express Limited Employee Service Rules applicable to you.
The airline further writes, ‘The company has decided to terminate your services immediately. Therefore, you will no longer be considered an employee of the company, and the company will have no liability towards you as an employer. Additionally, you will no longer have access to any official e-mails, servers, other communications, any and all information related to the company. And you will not be eligible for any employee related benefits offered by the company.
More than 100 flights cancelled, 15,000 passengers worried
According to Air India Express CEO Alok Singh, more than 100 cabin crew members suddenly went on leave on Tuesday night citing illness. Due to which a crowd of passengers gathered at the airports and it became difficult for Air India Express to handle the situation. According to a PTI report, more than 100 Air India Express flights were canceled due to this incident, due to which more than 15,000 passengers had to bear the brunt.
Flights were disrupted at many airports including Kochi, Calicut, Delhi and Bengaluru, domestic and international services including several Gulf countries were also affected. At Delhi airport alone, 14 flights were canceled from 4 am to 4 pm on Wednesday.
