DGCA asks Labour Min to remove pilots from workmen category

The Civil Aviation Ministry has asked the Labour Ministry to remove pilots and engineers from the workmen category to prevent them from going on strike, official sources have said.
In the Industrial Dispute Act 1947, non-workman is defined as an employee who is mainly in managerial or administrative capacity, or who draws wages exceeding Rs 10,000 per month.
Besides, armed forces and police personnel have also been kept out of the workmen category as they are governed by different laws.
"The Ministry has contended that since aircraft engineers certify an aircraft, which is a supervisory role, and pilots' jobs are highly-paid ones, they should be removed from the workmen category," the Aviation Ministry sources said.

The previous UPA government had in 2012 considered the idea after the national carrier was hit by a series of strikes by its pilots and engineers over different issues.
"The Labour Ministry had, however, turned down the proposal on certain grounds," the sources said.

The Aviation Ministry has, however, this time made a strong pitch with fresh arguments to explain the rationale of its renewed proposal to the Labour Ministry, they said.
A Parliamentary panel had also, in 2009, suggested that the government lay down a list of "highly paid jobs" which are currently tagged as "workman".
"The Committee is of the view that it would be logical for the Government to keep the supervisory staff out of the workmen category irrespective of the wages they are drawing. It urges the Government that supervisory staff be clubbed with the managerial and administrative employees.

"...The Committee also urges the Government to lay down a list of highly paid jobs which presently come under the workmen category, as being outside the purview of the laws relating to workmen, workmen like airline pilots are quite capable of negotiating their terms of employment on their own since they hardly take recourse to the Industrial Disputes Act," Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour had suggested in its report.