Mumbai HC temporarily restrains Air India from making salary cuts

Air India employees living at its Mumbai staff quarters breathed a sigh of relief on Friday after the city’s High Court passed an order temporarily restraining the airline from making deductions to their salaries. “As the time is sought on behalf of the Air India, the Air India shall also not deduct penal rent and damage charges till the next date,” the court said in an order issued on Friday. The next hearing will take place on February 22.

The disinvested national carrier’s employees, who were yet to vacate its properties, came in for a shock when they were served a notice in December warning them of an impending pay cut. That was followed by a heavily truncated pay cheque, DH had reported, citing payslip details. The airline colonies were not part of the privatisation deal.

Employee unions have pointed out how the salary cuts disregarded the pendency of the ongoing petitions and utterly violated the orders passed by the High Court in the previous two hearings.

Air India Engineering Services and Air India Airport Services will also not make any deductions from the salaries of its employees towards penal rent and damages of Rs 15 lakhs till the next date of hearing, Advocate Ashok Shetty, who represents three AI employee unions, told DH citing their statement in the court.

AI did not respond to DH’s request seeking comment.