As its new owner, the Tata Group, begins the process of reviving the airline, Air India has lowered the retirement age to attract more employees.
According to a circular distributed to the airline’s employees, the VRS scheme has been expanded to include employees over the age of 40, up from the previous age limit of 55. BQ Prime has reviewed the circular.
Previously, the airline allowed permanent employees aged 55 or with 20 years of service to use VRS. The scheme has now been extended to cabin crew, clerical and allied staff, and unskilled employees.
An email sent to Tata Sons Pvt. for comment went unanswered
Prior to the takeover by Tata Group, Air India’s salaries were higher than the industry average, despite the fact that the airline was struggling to repay debt and needed government assistance to stay afloat. Talace Pvt., a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, purchased it for Rs 18,000 crore. Air India has a fleet of 128 planes.
As a one-time benefit, the airline has offered ex-gratia payments to all employees who apply between June 1 and July 31. The amounts were not specified in the circular. At the end of March 2021, it had 8,156 employees.
According to its annual report, the carrier’s standalone employee benefit expenses in the pre-Covid year ended March 2020 were Rs 3225.4 crore, which decreased to Rs 2,255.7 crore in FY21.
Air India lost over Rs 7,000 crore on its own in FY21, while revenue more than halved to Rs 12,104 crore.
Tata Sons recently appointed Campbell Wilson as CEO and Managing Director of Air India. Wilson was the CEO of Scoot, Singapore Airlines’ wholly owned low-cost subsidiary.
