Tata Group rolls out voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) in Air India on June 1 in a bid to infuse fresh talent in the airline.
Around 4,500 employees have opted for retirement under the scheme, as reported by the Economic Times. According to the report, nearly 4,000 more employees will retire from in the next two years.
The ET report, which quoted executives of the company with knowledge of the matter, said Air India is working on improving productivity and revitalising 'archaic systems' with digital culture. The Tata’s has also launched a major recruitment drive in metro cities to hire fresh talent.
The airline is also planning to add new Airbus A350 jets and Boeing's narrow-body planes to renew its fleet.
"It [Air India] has to become a modern airline and shed systems, processes and people from an era where the mindset has been set and cannot be changed. This is a digital era, and the airline has to be revamped in terms of systems and people to be consumer-focused," Mark Martin, CEO of Martin Consulting, was quoted as saying by ET.
Air India has also been hiring people from Tata Group firms, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata Digital, to handle call centres, website, and customer experience. It is also working on improving the execution and customer service, the report added.
Tata Group executives also said that the airline needed people with the right attitude to compete with international rivals.
Employees older than 40 and 20 years of continuous employment can opt for voluntary retirement in Air India. The company also gave an ex-gratia amount of Rs 1 lakh to those who opted for the VRS between June 1 and July 31, the report mentioned.