Bank employees across India held a one-day strike called by the UFBU, demanding a five-day work week and resolution of other issues. Unions have threatened to intensify protests with more strikes if the government fails to approve their demands.
Bank employees and officers across the country on Friday observed a nationwide one-day strike called by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), demanding implementation of a five-day banking week and raising several other pending issues, including differences over the Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and pension-related demands.
The UFBU, which claims to represent more than 90 per cent of the banking workforce, held protests and demonstrations across several cities, including Delhi, Bhopal, Chennai, Siliguri, Rajkot and Vijayawada. The forum comprises seven unions — All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA), All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC), National Confederation of Bank Employees (NCBE), All India Bank Officers’ Association (AIBOA), Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI), Indian National Bank Officers’ Congress (INBOC) and Indian National Bank Employees’ Federation (INBEF).
Unions Detail Primary Demand
In Tamil Nadu’s Chennai, AIBEA General Secretary CH Venkatachalam said the strike had received participation from nearly eight lakh employees, officers and managers across the country. “Now, today the strike has been successful all over the country. Nearly 8 lakh employees, officers, and managers have participated. The strike has been successful. The main demand in this strike is that, as agreed in the settlement in March 2024, the government should give the approval for introducing the five-day banking week,” Venkatachalam said.
“Today, two Saturdays are holidays; the remaining Saturdays are working. We have agreed to extra working hours from Monday to Friday, and so we have asked for all Saturdays to be holidays. Banks have agreed, management has agreed; they have gone to the government, and for 30 months it has been pending. So we are demanding that the government should give approval for that. That is the main demand,” he said.
Warning of Intensified Protests
He said the unions had held conciliation meetings before the Chief Labour Commissioner, Finance Ministry and Indian Banks’ Association, but no commitment was given on when the demand would be accepted. “So, left with no other alternative, today all employees, officers, we are very angry, so we have gone on strike. Now at least the government should understand their feelings and implement it; otherwise, the strike will be further intensified,” Venkatachalam said.
He further announced that the unions would observe a three-day strike from September 28 to 30 and, if the demands remained unresolved, an indefinite strike from October 26.
Leaders Across India Echo Demands
In West Bengal’s Siliguri, Bank Employees Federation, West Bengal Vice President Shymal Kumar Hazra said the banking sector was the “economic backbone” of the country and asserted that the demand for a five-day banking week was legitimate. “… the banking sector is the economic backbone of India, but it has been weakened. Bank employees and officers work together throughout the year and contribute significantly to the country’s economy. Our demand for a five-day banking week is legitimate and has been pending for a long time. Under the United Forum of Bank Unions, all seven major bank organisations are participating in the strike, and we are receiving strong support across the country. With around 90% of banking work now being carried out digitally, there is no reason why five-day banking cannot be implemented…” Hazra said.
In Gujarat’s Rajkot, All India SBI Officers’ Association Deputy General Secretary Pawan Sharma said the strike was being held under the aegis of the UFBU, an umbrella body of seven organisations representing around nine lakh bank employees nationally. “Today’s strike is being held under the aegis of the UFBU, an umbrella body of seven organisations representing 9 lakh bank employees at the national level. Our primary demand is the implementation of a 5-day work week; the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) had approved this during the 2022 settlement but failed to implement it. Another issue concerned the Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which the government withdrew following our pressure. However, the five-day work week issue remains unresolved…” Sharma said.
In Andhra Pradesh’s Vijayawada, the General Secretary of the State Bank of India Officers’ Association said bank employees across public and private sector banks were observing the one-day strike to press for a five-day work week. “Today, bank employees across India—working in all public sector and private sector banks—are observing a one-day strike to demand a 5-day work week,” he said.
“The entire world is moving towards digital banking and digitalisation. In our country, UPI transactions and digital payments are setting record numbers every single day, with billions of transactions taking place,” he said.
“Furthermore, the Central Government, various government departments, and almost all major private sector companies observe a 5-day work week. Despite this, employees at our nationalised banks are still working six days a week,” he added.
“To support our demand for a 5-day work week, we are observing a nationwide one-day strike today across India. We will continue this struggle until our demands are met,” he said.
Strike Impact in Other States
In Odisha, the United Forum of Bank Unions observed a one-day bank strike in Bhubaneswar, demanding the implementation of a five-day workweek.
In Madhya Pradesh, UFBU, including the All India Bank Employees’ Association, held a protest march in Bhopal as part of a nationwide strike over the delay in implementing a 5-day banking week, differences over performance-linked incentive (PLI) schemes, and several other pending demands, including pension-related issues.
Future Agitation Plans
The UFBU has said the September 11 strike is the first phase of its agitation. The unions have announced a three-day strike from September 28 to 30, followed by an indefinite strike from October 26 if their demands are not addressed. The unions are also seeking resolution of issues related to pension and the PLI scheme, besides other pending banking-sector demands. (ANI)
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