Another Voluntary Retirement Scheme On The Cards At Air India

Earlier this year, Air India offered thousands of its employees the option to choose voluntary retirement as it looked to optimize its workforce. And now, a report suggests that it could consider another such scheme, as it aggressively hires young talents for its larger turnaround plan.

Voluntary retirement

Air India could offer the option of another voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) to several of its employees to optimize its workforce for long-term operational needs. According to a report by Mint, people aware of the matter have hinted at the possibility of another such scheme.

In June, in an attempt to trim the headcount at the organization, the airline offered this scheme to eligible employees giving additional benefits to lowering the retirement age for some departments. More than 4,000 employees opted for the scheme.

Photo: Getty Images

When the Tata Group acquired the carrier, it had around 13,000 employees, of which 8,000 were permanent. With thousands taking voluntary retirement and a further 4,000 set to retire in a couple more years, the airline’s workforce will look significantly different from when it was a state-run carrier.

A person aware of the development told Mint,

“The topic of VRS has been brought up, and it could happen in the next two-three months.”

“The airline is on a hiring spree, and the VRS will be a good option for a lot of their employees who have spent a good amount of time with the company and may want to look at other options.”

Hiring spree

Air India is busy these days hiring top talents for both entry and high-level positions across various departments. It plans to multiply its aircraft numbers and expand its network in the coming years and needs a qualified and skilled workforce to support long-term growth.

In October, the carrier said that more than 73,000 candidates had applied for cockpit and cabin crew roles in the previous two months. A little over 1,700 applications were for pilots and around 72,000 for cabin crew.

Photo: Getty Images

Even other departments at the airline have received a good response, with more than 25,000 applications coming in from management postgraduates for ground-based roles.

More than 2,000 applications were received for a tech center in Kerala for various roles, including UX visual designers and cybersecurity, among others.

Mint quotes a source as saying,

“The airline is looking to add new talent in the organization, in line with the transformation plan. It plans to accelerate the company’s growth in domestic and international aviation markets. The company is trying to reduce the multiplicity of roles and bring in more efficiency in the employees.”

Photo: Boeing

Many viewed the airline’s first attempt at offering VRS with some skepticism, but thousands of employees did end up taking it. It will be interesting to see the response this time around, if and when Air India decides to offer the scheme again.

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Source: Mint