The Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat has directed the Pakistan International Airline (PIA) and Pakistan Airline Pilots Association (Palpa) to finalise new working agreement within four weeks. The decision was made at a meeting held on Thursday at Islamabad. According to the minutes of the meeting, the chairman of the Committee took serious notice of the derogatory language used by Captain Omar Nazir in his letter to IFALPA about the actions of Civil Aviation Authority. The committee directed him to withdraw the letter on immediate basis and a tender a written apology to DG, CAA in this respect.
Both sides (PIA management and Palpa) have agreed to abide by the existing working agreement 2011-2013 in letter and spirit until the finalisation of the new working agreement. It has also been decided that both PIA and Palpa would renegotiate and reconsider all the provisions of the draft new working agreement and Director Flight Operation would send an inventory of all the clauses requiring renegotiations by PIA management to Palpa by October 13, 2015.
The document said that both sides had been directed to finalise new working agreement within four weeks and thereafter, PIA would seek the approval from the board of directors. The chair asked both parties to present their case in writing regarding the seniority issue. Palpa office-bearers were informed that the Board of Directors (BOD) of PIA has given approval for the hiring of pilots on contract up to the license validity/ CA43.
Once the minutes of BOD approval are available, Palpa will be consulted as per Palpa-PIA working agreement 2011-2013. The Chairman also requested to continue the present DFO to ensure the pilot training. However, sub-judice matters will only be dealt with by the courts until these matters are unconditionally and irrevocably withdrawn by the aggrieved parties.
The document further stated that detailed report would be provided by Palpa to the chairman PIA to address the anomalies in the aviation policy in the interest of national flag-carrier and chairman PIA assured that committee will be formed to investigate the loses in the airline and put forward recommendations to improve the working of the airline and a PALPA representative will be part of this committee. The Chair informed the members that FED should be taken up with the government and Chairman PIAC assured that he will put up a proposal to the BOD to bear the burden of at least one set of tickets for the pilots.