Earlier, PIA’s flight operations on Sunday have been partially restored on the 6th day of the strike as the Federal government refused to back down from its stance.
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The PIA employees were killed and several more wounded at Karachi’s worldwide airport on February 2 when clashes broke out between security forces and staff, though authorities denied opening fire.
Two PIA flights carrying seven hundred and twenty-five Umra pilgrims from Jeddah landed at Islamabad airport.
“Either the management was hand in glove with the protesting employees or those at the helm of affairs in PIA were simply incompetent”, he said.
Operations and offices in Karachi remain suspended where employees continue their protest.
A senior PIA official who wished not to be named told Business Recorder that flight operations were not halted when PALPA, Society of Engineers Aircraft Pakistan, and the CBA went on strike in 2011. They said that 400 Umrah pilgrims will be brought back through Saudi Airlines.
He claimed that all departments of the national flag carrier had worked as a great team and made these flights possible.
The Joint Action Committee has expressed its willingness to negotiate with the federal government on the issue of PIA’s privatisation to help resolve the ensuing crisis.
In a statement, he congratulated the PIA workers who realized the problems being faced by passengers, and rejoined their duties.
PIA, one of the world’s leading airlines until the 1970s, now suffers frequent cancellations and delays and has been involved in numerous controversies over the years, including the jailing of a drunk pilot in Britain in 2013.
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The government has sought to allay fears the move could bring mass layoffs, but sporadic protests have continued.
