‘Govt rejects 5-day work week demand of bank employees’:Unions to continue with 3-day strike from 28 Sept

Just before the bank employees’ strike, a media report claimed that the government had never promised five-day working for banks and that the issue was not discussed during the salary revision negotiations either. A Finance Ministry source said the demand had been raised unilaterally by the employee unions and that no agreement had been reached on it between the two sides. Meanwhile, the bank unions remain firm on their demand and have made full preparations to go on a three-day strike from 28 September. To prevent inconvenience to the general public, the government has directed public sector and regional rural banks to remain open on 27 September (Sunday). Bank unions claim: Agreement reached in March 2024 The Finance Ministry’s position is completely contrary to the claims made by the bank unions. According to All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC) General Secretary Rupam Roy, an agreement was reached during the wage revision settlement between the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) in March 2024 to declare Saturdays as holidays. The IBA is the organisation that manages banks and negotiates employees’ salaries and service conditions. The UFBU, meanwhile, is the umbrella body of nine major unions in the banking sector. 90% of bank employees to join strike, operations likely to be affected Seven major unions from across the country are taking part in the strike, representing more than 90% of the banking workforce. They include AIBEA, AIBOC, NCBE, AIBOA, BEFI, INBEF and INBOC. The unions have made it clear that they will not withdraw their protest until the government sets a concrete timeline for implementing a five-day workweek. Government and unions also clash over PLI scheme Besides the five-day workweek, the Performance-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme remains a point of contention. The government has issued a notification on a revised PLI scheme for senior officers (Scale IV and above), under which employees may receive an incentive equivalent to up to 365 days of their basic pay for better performance. Unions are also opposing the scheme. Banks to open on Sunday, 27 September, to provide relief to customers Branch operations could come to a complete standstill because of the three-day strike beginning on 28 September. To ensure that the general public does not face difficulties withdrawing money, clearing cheques and carrying out other essential transactions, the Finance Ministry has ordered all public sector and regional rural banks to remain open on Sunday, 27 September.