Air India to pay salaries by October 31

With an impending stir threat by its pilots, Air India is likely to pay the September salaries of its employees in two days and incentives and allowances by November 10, airline sources said today. Talks were held with banks and financial institutions for working capital loans to arrange the amount for payment of salaries, productivity-linked incentives (PLIs) and flying allowances to the employees including pilots, they said. Sources also said the management of the cash-strapped airline was making all efforts to pay the dues of the employees very soon, including the salaries by October 31 and PLI and allowances by November 10.

Talks with the banks were initiated after negotiations between executive pilots and their other colleagues in Mumbai over the past few days.

As the negotiations failed to yield any result, the executive pilots as well as the Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) threatened “industrial action” if the issue was not resolved soon.