ISLAMABAD, May 29: As a consumer boycott of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) enters the third week, the national flag carrier has reaffirmed its policy of not allowing its workers to form trade unions.

PIA chairman Tariq Kirmani told Dawn that the consumer boycott announced by the London-based ITF on May 14 would not hurt the airline’s business and reputation.

Announcing the boycott, the ITF had started distributing pamphlets at various international airports asking passengers not to fly with PIA after the management sacked a number of employees for their alleged involvement in union activities. The federation also held protests outside PIA offices in various cities of the United Kingdom.

Mr Kirmani said PIA did not give any right to its employees to form unions. The management took care of its workers’ rights, including promotion, salary raise and other matters.

Those violating the ban on forming unions would be punished, Mr Kirmani said in reply to a question.

He, however, said he did not know the exact number of employees fired for involvement in union activities.

The ITF says that with the support of the government, PIA had used an anti-union legislation to sack the general secretary and publicity secretary of the ITF-affiliated Air League of PIA Employees and refused to hold dialogue with pilots.

“Six more were suspended for criticising the company’s attitude, followed by four more in March who had been giving out leaflets (asking passengers travelling on PIA to boycott PIA)”, says an ITF statement.

“In response to our actions in Great Britain this week, hundreds of unions - from countries such as Bulgaria, Iceland, Indonesia, Italy, Malta, Norway, Spain, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and the USA - responded to the ITF’s campaign by sending online protest letters and emails to President Gen Pervez Musharraf and to PIA (management)”.

ITF Civil Aviation Secretary Ingo Marowsky met the counsellor of the Pakistani High Commission in London on May 24 to explain reasons for the boycott.