NCLAT upholds PF, gratuity dues for Jet Airways employees, rejects SBI appeal

In a significant relief for thousands of former Jet Airways employees, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Tuesday (June 30, 2026) upheld an NCLT order directing the airline’s liquidator to pay provident fund (PF) and gratuity dues to workmen and employees in full, dismissing appeals filed by the State Bank of India (SBI) and seven other financial creditors.

The NCLAT also rejected the plea by the banks that payment of provident fund, gratuity and pension fund dues be part of the liquidation estate, where they would be subjected to competing claims from various creditors under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code’s (IBC) distribution mechanism.

SBI and other banks had claimed that such an exclusion was contingent on the existence of a fund for PF and gratuity at the beginning of the liquidation which was not the case, but this premise was rejected by the NCLAT. 

While upholding the NCLT’s February 4 order on PF and gratuity dues, the appellate tribunal also ordered that May 20, 2020 be the effective date for calculating the 24 months’ worth of workmen’s dues under the IBC.

SBI wanted the litigation period to be included, which would have extinguished the workmen’s claim to priority payment of dues.

Jet Airways has around 11,800 workmen, in addition to its other employees, whose claims are part of the liquidation proceedings. Employee groups estimate the airline’s outstanding provident fund (PF) and gratuity dues at around ₹265 crore.

“We are very elated with the NCLAT order which upholds workers rights. It has been a very long legal battle for us, and we hope that justice prevails,” said Narayan Hariharan, former senior Vice President at, Jet Airways, and a member of the Jet Airways Officers and Staff Association.

Jet Airways operated its last commercial flight on April 17 2019, following which it was admitted into the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process. In November 2024, the Supreme Court ordered the liquidation of Jet Airways after concluding that the successful resolution applicant, the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium had failed to implement the resolution plan.