LAHORE: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) administration on Thursday sacked 11 employees who were actively involved in the protests and strikes against the government’s decision to privatize the national carrier.
The employees have been sacked on charges of violating the Essential Services Act, which the federal government imposed on Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to crush the countrywide protest against privatization of the national carrier.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on February 2 approved the Compulsory Service Maintenance Act 1952 for Pakistan International Airlines. After the implementation of this Act, all unions of PIA are dissolved and the protests become illegal.
At the same time, PIA administration has also issued show-cause notices to several hundred employees.
According to PIA sources, employees given notices are expected to provide answers within 72 hours. Action would be taken against those employees who fail to provide reasonable answers.
The Joint Action Committee (JAC) spokesperson, in response, stated that the management is using resentful ways against the employees. “We had already asked the management to sack us before dismissing the daily wagers because we had started the protest against the privatisation of PIA,” he added.
JAC of PIA employees ended the eight-day long strike on Wednesday, after which Chairman JAC Captain Sohail Baloch met with Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to hold dialogues. The confusion arose when the government agreed not to remove anyone from services and ended up sacking 11 employees of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
Earlier this week, The Joint Action Committee of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) announced to end the strike and asked the employees to resume flight operations across the country with immediate effect.
At a press conference in Karachi on Tuesday, Joint Action Committee chairman Captain Sohail Baloch announced the decision to end the strike and stated “I request all the airline workers to work with full dedication and pay no heed to anyone trying to disrupt the flight operations. A kind friend advised us to call of the strike.”
On the other hand, Former Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had asked the government to take the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) privatisation issue to parliament.
“The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government should resolve the issue through dialogue with the protesting employees. It should avoid the use of force to suppress the employees’ voice,” the former prime minister said while talking to reporters in Lahore.
He expressed that the killing of two PIA workers is an indication that the government had mishandled the protest. He further added that the government should think about the protesting employees and understand their concern regarding the privatisation of the national carrier, which might leave them jobless.
“The government should bring this matter to parliament and find an amicable solution,” he suggested.
At the same time, Pakistan and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have reached an understanding regarding the privatization of the national carrier.
According to the Ministry of Finance and Privatisation, the understanding to postpone the privatisation of the PIA by 6 months was reached during the last meeting that took place in Dubai.
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