New Delhi, July 23: Air India on Thursday decided not to layoff any employee. The national air carrier in a meeting with the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) also took the decision not to deduct basic pay, dearness allowance (DA) and house rent allowance (HRA) of any category of employees. Air India said, "The meeting reiterated that unlike other carriers which have laid off large number of their employees, no employee of AirIndia will be laid off. "

It added that there had been no reduction in the basic pay, DA and HRA of any category of employees. However, Air India said that due to the difficult financial condition of the airline that was exacerbated by COVID-19, the rationalisation of allowances had to be implemented. Air India Slashes Allowances of All Employees by 40 Percent, Here's List of Reduced Allowances.

Tweet by Air India:

It assured that the flying crew would be paid as per the actual number of hours flown. Air India said, "As domestic and international operations expand to reach pre-COVID levels and the financial position of Air India improves, the rationalization of allowances will be reviewed."

Earlier in the day, the national carrier approved a scheme for sending employees on leave without pay (LWP). The term for LWP can range from six months to two years, which can be extended up to five years, said the national airliner.

On Wednesday, the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) rejected the salary cut of 60 per cent proposed by Air India and has criticised the "diktat" type attitude of the national carrier's management and officials. This issue was discussed at the ICPA Northern Region general body meeting held recently were 90 percent of the members participated.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 23, 2020 07:37 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).