Employees of a few UB Group companies have been given annual increments and bonuses. This is even as some employees of Kingfisher Airlines, which is part of the UB Group, are yet to receive wages for the last six months.

Sources told Business Line that the annual increment given in July has been given this year also and could range between 16 per cent and 24 per cent. In addition, the UB Group has given bonuses which could be as high as 30 per cent. UB Group spokesperson as well as its CFO did not respond to calls or messages regarding pay hikes in certain group companies.

The UB Group has interests in brewing, distilling, real estate, engineering, fertilisers, biotechnology, information technology and aviation. Mr Vijay Mallya, Member of Parliament, is its Chairman.

“On July 31 it will be six months since some of us have been paid. Yet, the same promoter has money to pay annual bonuses,” a KF employee said.

SEBI rules

Sources indicate that regulations of Securities and Exchange Board of India could be preventing payments to some Kingfisher Airlines employees. The regulations prevent funds earned by one company in a group from being distributed to other companies of the same group until and unless the other company takes a loan from the profit-making company.

The board members of USL recently held a board meeting in Budapest, while the board meetings of the other group companies are expected to take place in Delhi on August 8 and 9, sources indicated.