A day after Air India employees called off their wildcat strike, the management on Thursday continued the crackdown, derecognising two major unions and sacking 41 employees.
The trouble for the distraught airline, which is trying to resurrect its image and brand after last week's crash in Mangalore, is far from over, as union leaders have called for another strike from June 12. Yet another round of confrontation between the unions and the management appears certain with the strike call issued by the Air Corporation Employees' Union (ACEU), consisting mainly of employees of the erstwhile Indian Airlines. The call came within a day of the flash strike being smashed by the management, which sacked 17 employees and suspended 15 others on Wednesday.
The management derecognised the ACEU and the All-India Aircraft Engineers' Association (AIAEA), which had spearheaded the strike. Offices of the unions across the country were sealed.
Air India also struggled to clear the backlog of passengers, though 25 flights in the domestic sector were cancelled during the day. But international flight services were normal, an official said.
The management came down heavily on union leaders and employees soon after they called off the strike following a Delhi High Court order and the Centre gave the management a free hand to end the strike. On Thursday, the services of 41 more employees, some of them union leaders, were terminated. Another nine were suspended.
