Bank Unions Call For 2-Day Nationwide Strike; Check Dates

New Delhi: The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella organisation of nine major unions of employees and officers of public sector banks, has called for a nationwide strike on March 24 and 25.

UFBU members, who organised a demonstration in Chandigarh on Friday, announced a protest meeting at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on March 3, followed by the two-day strike.

Their major demands include recruitment of more employees in public sector banks and implementation of five-day work week.

According to All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC) secretary Rupam Roy, the proposal for the five-day banking week has been accepted by the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) but is yet to be approved by the Central government.

“We will be forced to go in for an indefinite strike unless the government pays heed to our demands. The public sector banks in India are being neglected. We are losing market share despite serving people to the best of our abilities. Our customer base is high, but we do not have sufficient staff to serve them properly. Sometimes, our customers lose their patience and make their displeasure felt. We can understand their frustration but can’t do anything. The customer to employee ratio is just too high to handle. Recruitment has been frozen by the government. Unless, we get more staff, how can we serve our customers better,” Roy said.

He also mentioned about the common man being denied access to loans at low interest rates.

“As our public sector banks can’t process or disburse loans on time due to a shortage of manpower, the common man is forced to move to private sector banks. The private sector banks are not interested in the common man. They seek a niche clientele who will help them earn profits. They guide the common man to Non Banking Financial Corporations (NBFCs) that charge exorbitant interest. Finally, it is the common man who suffers,” Roy claimed.

He further pointed out the overbearing role being played by the Department of Financial Services (DFS). According to him, the interference of DFS amounts to flouting of labour laws in the banking sector.