The New Nation - Internet Edition

UNB, Dhaka

The committee, formed to review the applications of Biman employees who went on retirement under the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) and now want to get their jobs back, is likely to submit its report within two weeks.

The Civil Aviation and Tourism Ministry formed the three-member committee on January 2 and asked it to submit its report within the next two weeks. Later, the deadline was extended.

Civil Aviation and Tourism joint secretary Fakhrul Islam was made convenor of the committee while Biman finance director Muhammad Tahir Hossain member and Civil Aviation and Tourism deputy secretary M Majibur Rahman member secretary.

"We've almost finalised our report and will submit it before April 15," a member of the committee told UNB.

The committee was asked to find out whether there were any irregularities in the VRS process.

The Biman authorities last year had planned to cut 1,593 jobs in its eight departments to trim its manpower to 3,400 from about 5,000. The eight departments are Customer Service, Engineering, Project and Planing, Administration, Finance, Store and Purchase, Flight Operation, and Marketing and Sales.

Accordingly, the authorities had invited applications on June 4 last year from its employees willing to go on retirement under the VRS trimming plan.

As of June 20 last year, some 2,267 employees submitted their applications for the voluntary retirement, but most of them alleged that they were forced to sign the printed VRS form of retirement.

As the number of applicants exceeded the number of the planned job cut, the government formed a committee, headed by Biman managing director MA Momen, to make a short list.

The committee finalieed a list of 1,877 employees of different departments for the voluntary retirement, a programme that is euphemistically called as golden handshake.

The voluntary retirement seekers also withdrew their designated retirement benefits.

Later, over 500 Biman employees who already went retirement under the VRS made an appeal to the government that they had to accept the VRS amid threats by some high officials.

The Civil Aviation Authority formed the inquiry committee following the appeal.

Meanwhile, on March 25, the High Court issued an interim injunction on contractual appointment of flight stewardesses by Bangladesh Biman Airlines Ltd for its aircraft.

A High Court Division Bench, headed by Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain, issued the interim injunction following a writ petition challenging the legality of Biman's impugned action on initiating contractual appointment of Flight Stewardesses before submission of its review board report.

Ferdousi Begum Karnaj and six others, who were allegedly forced to retire under the voluntary retirement scheme last year, filed the writ petition.

The court also issued a rule upon the Biman Bangladesh Airlines Ltd in this regard.

This impugned action of Biman aggrieved VRS staff that prompted them to move to the High Court seeking redress.