A joint strike by trade unions against AISATS, a joint venture between Air India Limited and SATS Limited, at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport was called off on Sunday following a meeting convened by the Regional Labour Commissioner. The union representatives said that their demands regarding salary hikes and bonuses were met. AISATS offers ground handling services at the airport.
"The union had demanded a salary hike of Rs 5000. The company has agreed to pay Rs 2700 in the first year and Rs 3000 in the second year. As for the bonus, our demand was that 25 per cent of basic should be paid. Last year, they paid Rs 17,000. This time, we demanded Rs 25,000, but they declined it, following which we went on strike. In the meeting, the demands have been met," said Rajeev S, convener of Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Staff and Workers Welfare Association (INTUC).
The strike began on Saturday evening. Many flight services were disrupted, and other services were also affected at the airport. Around 300 workers employed in ground handling, passenger service, cargo, cabin cleaning, and equipment operation participated in the strike. In the notice issued by the trade unions prior to the strike, it was cited that their demands were mainly regarding wage revision and festival bonuses.
