The document discusses the Jet Airways pilot strike of 2009 in India. [1] Formation of a new pilots' union called the National Aviator's Guild (NAG) triggered tensions between pilots and expatriate management. [2] Two senior pilots were fired without explanation, prompting the NAG to issue a strike notice. [3] On September 7th, pilots went on mass sick leave, cancelling flights and costing the company millions per day until an agreement was reached on September 12th.

1. Prepared by:
Abhishek Sharma FT13300
Arjun Choudhry FT13312
Section C3 - Group 4 Garv Sharma FT13325
Irene Eltham FT13337
Mrityunjay Arya FT13350
Ramachandran KS FT13362
Sonali Das FT13374
Vijaykumar Bale FT13386

2. • 1875: First factory Commission formed in Bombay
• 1881: First Factories Act: prohibiting the employment of children under the age of 7 &
restricted working hours of children below 12
• 1844: Memorandum signed by 5,300 workers: memorandum focused on weekly rest, half
an hour’s recess, compensation for disablement – but requirements were not met
• 1890: First Union – The Bombay Mill Hands Association; formed in India as a result of
efforts by Narayan Lokhande
• 1905: Swadeshi Movement
• 1918: Formation of the Madras Trade Union
• 1920’s: The non-cooperation movement & formation of the All India Trade Union Congress
(AICTU)
• 1926: Passing of the Indian Trade Union Act
• 1947-1965: Growth of unionisation
• 1991: The Indian Government implemented the International Monetary Fund stabilisation
& structural adjustment program; to reduce conflict on the labour front
• 2000: Supreme court ruled that government employees have no right to indulge in strikes

3.  Formation if NAG triggered the Rift between Management and the
Pilots.
 Two senior Jet Airways pilots were terminated without any explanation
by end of July.
 On 22nd August 2009, sent strike notice to management and labour
commission.
 On Sept 7th the pilots went on mass sick leave(strike legally).
 On September 9th 2009, 9 central trade unions extended their support to
the striking Jet Airways pilots.

4.  Management received a strike notice from NAG
 Chaos in airports in Delhi & Mumbai
 Management sacked 2 more pilots mid-way due to failure to negotiate with the
Union
 Nine central trade unions extended their support in favour of the Het Airways
pilots
 Cancellation of flights led to a massive loss & a reduction in daily revenue &
number of passengers
 Increased dissonance between the pilots and the management
 Negative publicity and wrath of passengers
 The company lost INR 20 Crore & a drop of 30% in ticket bookings during the strike
 Post the 5 day strike, Jet Airways daily revenue of $8 million reduced considerably
 Bad publicity for the company in an already downward spiralling industry
 September 12th, 2009: The management and NAG reached an agreement and
the dismissed Pilots were taken back along with a consultative group being
formed in order to resolve issues
 This strike had inflicted losses (INR 225 crore) and debt (16000 crore)
 The number of passengers dropped from 23,000 per day to 7,500

5.  The lack of maintaining proper labour relations has proved to be a curse in
India, as industrialization & privatization continues to grow
 Unions suffer from lack of vision & zeal; in addition to failure of recognition
 An increase in contract labour has resulted in a reduction of labour union
activities
 An overlap of labour laws that have no standard definitions & terms
 Problems such as the growth of the unorganized sector, alarming increase in lost
workdays, tensed relations between employers & employees, lack of
trust, political intervention, lack of proper enforcing bodies, increasing
unrest, and hindered economic growth are serious contributing factors
 India’s labour force growing at 2.5% and an employment growth rate of only
2.3%
 Therefore, labour laws need to be reformed, restructured and imposed
accordingly

6.  We do not agree with the existence of existing labor unions, however they are a
necessary evil to sustain and ensure employee welfare. There is a need to update the
existing labor laws and regulations, with a focus on sustaining balance between minimal
economic wastage, flexibility, performance orientation & preserving employee interest
Some of Negative Implications are:
 Can be misused against management and used as a political tool at times.
 Too many loopholes in labour laws.
 Multiple unions create infighting between employees and have nothing to do with
interest of the organization
 Reasons why the pilots joined NAG
 Most of the management was expatriate and they were not used to the workers having
any rights and this created discontent among the pilots.
 The foreign management made the Indians wait indefinitely for promotions.
 Allowances were cut for Indians and yet foreign pilots were hired at double salaries.
 The pilots and the management had disagreements on working conditions but the
expatriate management went back on most of the issues.

7. The Pilots’ Side:
• The Pilots have the huge responsibility of transporting the passengers and
forgot their basic responsibility which erupted the strike.
• Unlike the factory workers which unfortunately the Pilots compared
themselves with, Pilots are actually paid lakhs of rupees hence the job
itself had a sense of pride and dignity. This attempt was an exaggeration.
• The pilots should have realized that their growth lay in the growth of a
company. And the impact of their actions on the economy.
• Proper talks would have not given rise to such an unstable situation. A
relation between the management and its employees remain to be the
most fragile if not dealt with care.

8. • There was an evident lack of communication with their highly paid
pilots who are the critical component of their flight crews. Better
communication may well have helped to diffuse the crisis.
• Firing an employee without reason is unacceptable and the
management should have understood that
• There should have been an ongoing process of negotiations with
the pilots over any issues that could lead to such a flashpoint.
• The pilots shouldn’t have been sacked for merely setting up an
union.
• The management could have recognized the guild as a forum
where employees take up certain specific employment conditions
with the managements of airlines

9. Thank you!