Indian agents strike over commission cuts
Four thousand travel agents throughout India are on strike today in protest at “unethical practices” by airlines.
Agents have called for a ‘no ticketing day’ as a protest against non-payment of commission to them by the airlines.
Claiming that more than 90% air travellers book tickets either through a travel agent or a travel website, the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) said they will not book tickets on Tuesday.
“At one point of time, we used to get 9% commission which has come down to 1% and in some case it is zero,” Rajji Rai of TAAI told the Hindustan Times.
The association has also demanded that the airlines should not be allowed to charge separately for various services like serving tea, food, insurance, preferred seat, change of dates among others. They demanded all these services to be included in the ticket price.
“We are the experts, who do everything from giving the best deal to arranging visa, travel insurance and even foreign exchange. We also play the role of a consultant to the corporate world for cost-effective solutions,” said Rai.
“This is a silent protest and we will not force anyone to join it. But to save the trade, it is important to tell the authority that without us, the aviation industry will lose the business.”
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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