Mumbai: At least 50% of the employees of National Aviation Co of India Ltd or Nacil, that runs Air India, will get their salaries on 3 July. Nacil had earlier said that June salaries would be deferred to 15 July due to a cash crunch. The decision to advance the payments follows talks between Nacil’s management with a section of unions that had threatened to strike work for deferring salaries. The delay in paying salaries is the first such by Nacil, which has at least 31,500 employees.

The salaries had been deferred due to a severe cash crunch the state-owned airline, which operates Air India, is facing. It has also asked the union government for at least Rs15,000 crore in fund infusion for the financial year ending March 2010.

George Abraham, general secretary of the Aviation Industry Employees’ Guild told Mint that the 50% that will be paid on 3 July largely comprises lower grade employees. A meeting is scheduled for 4 July to take a decision on salary disbursements for the remaining staff. Unions and management were making all possible efforts to not to disrupt the salary disbursements, he said. A Nacil spokesperson declined comment.