PIA removes six employees, including engineers, over strike

The management of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has terminated the services of its six staff members, who were actively involved in recent strike that cost over Rs 4 billion to the airline. Sources told Business Recorder that the management had issued over 235 show cause notices to the employees, who were actively involved in shutting down PIA flights operation for eight days during 15-day strike. However, official source confirmed the number of show cause notices to 177.
Meanwhile, sources further said that through these notices, which were dispatched through courier, the management had given a 72-hour deadline to the employees for reply that why disciplinary action should not be taken against them.
They said that these employees, who got termination letters, had failed to submit their replies against the show cause notices. Consequently, all of six employees have been considered as violators of PIAC Employees (Service & Discipline) Regulations- 1985. Sources said that they were charged under sections 75(a), 75(f), 75(r), 75(s), 75(ag), 75(an), 75(ap) of PIAC Employees (Service & Discipline) Regulations- 1985.
To a question, sources said that all the terminated employees were from PIA engineering and maintenance department and added that out of them, one namely Amjad H Ansari was from Islamabad while rest of them were from Karachi.
The names of terminated employees are Shoaib Noor (ID no 42142) served as A/C Engineer, Amjad H Ansari (ID no 48471) and served as A/C Engineer, Shoaib Saleem (ID no 64216) served as Trainee Engineer, Asad Mufti (ID no 64180) served as Trainee Engineer, Naeem Iqbal (ID no 64173) served as Trainee Engineer and Rao Naeem Khan (ID no 63751) served as Senior Technician.
On the other hand, the representatives of Joint Action Committee PIA Employees termed the action taken by the PIA management as revenge, saying that they were taking vengeance against PIA employees. They said that committee would announce next course of action if the said action was continued. They also urged Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif to look into the matter and play his role to fulfill his promise committed during recent meeting with the action committee.