- The United Forum of Bank Unions deferred its planned three-day strike nationwide
- A joint committee will be formed to decide on making all Saturdays bank holidays
- The committee will consult all stakeholders and focus on customer impact
Just hours before millions of bank customers braced for three days of disrupted services, the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) deferred its three-day nationwide strike following an eleventh-hour meeting with the Indian Banks' Association (IBA).
According to a statement released by UFBU, the bank union met the Indian Banks' Association at 9.30 pm on Sunday. After talks, both sides agreed on the following:
- A joint committee of the IBA and UFBU will be set up right away to look at the issue of making all Saturdays bank holidays. This committee will study every option, talk to everyone affected, and try to find a solution that works for all sides, especially customers.
- Talks will begin with the IBA on changing the PLI scheme for Scale IV and above officers, so their concerns can be raised with the government.
- Other pending issues, listed in the minutes from March 8, 2024, will be discussed so they can be settled soon.
Because of these agreements, the UFBU said it would call off its planned protests and strikes for now.
Speaking to NDTV, R Sekaran, President of the All India Bank Officers' Confederation, said, "The IBA has agreed to constitute a high-level committee to review our demand for 'five-day banking.' Representatives from the 'United Forum of Bank Unions' will also be part of this high-level committee. The committee will deliberate on this demand after consulting all stakeholders."
The strikes, which were planned to start on Monday, were the biggest step yet in a longer fight by bank unions this year over two major demands: a five-day working week for banks, and changes to a new incentive scheme for senior officers. Bank employees were set to go on strike to press for their primary demand, the implementation of "five-day banking" across all banks.
Around 8 lakh bank officers and employees were expected to take part in the three-day strike, which was set to affect over 1.81 lakh bank branches across the country. With the strike looming, banks and customers had already begun preparing for the disruption. All public sector and regional rural banks stayed open on Sunday, September 27, so customers could finish essential branch work before the strike began.
In March 2024, the Indian Banks' Association agreed in principle to shut banks on all Saturdays. In return, staff would work about 40 minutes extra each day from Monday to Friday. Unions say this plan was sent to the government for approval over two years ago but has still not been cleared.
The second big issue was the performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme. Under this scheme, officers at Scale IV and above could get bonuses worth up to 365 days' basic pay, based on how well they perform. Other staff and officers up to Scale III would get a maximum of 15 days' basic pay plus dearness allowance. Unions called this unfair, saying it broke an earlier deal that bonuses should be based on how well the whole bank performs and should be the same for everyone.
