Air India VRS: 4,500 opt for scheme by the new management

An estimated 4,500 Air India employees have opted for the voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) offered by the new management, said people with knowledge of the matter. This is a key part of the Tata Group’s strategy to infuse fresh energy by hiring new talent across operations in the airline. It’s working on revamping the airline to cut costs, improve productivity and revitalise archaic systems with a digital culture, executives said.

When it was acquired, Air India had about 13,000 employees, of which 8,000 were permanent staff and the rest contractual.