Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 17: Over eight lakh employees of nine major Bank Unions in the country are going on 48 hours (2-days) strike from the midnight of March 23.
Talking to the mediapersons senior members of the United Forum including Vishal Verma and Rajesh Mehta said that United Forum of Bank Unions is the joint co-ordination body of the 9 bank unions representing more than eight lakhs of employees and officers in Public Sector Banks, Private Sector Banks, Foreign Banks, Co-op. Banks and Regional Rural Banks. They include- All India Bank Employees Association, All India Bank Officers Confederation, National Confederation of Bank Unions, All India Bank Officers Association, Bank Employees Federation of India, Indian National Bank Employees Federation, Indian National Bank Officers Congress, National Organisation of Bank Workers and National Organisation of Bank Officers.
Verma said the United Forum of Bank Unions has given the call for agitational programmes culminating in 2 days (48 hours) continuous strike from the midnight of March 23 to midnight of March 25, 2025 on their major issues and demands.
These demands include– adequate recruitment in all cadres, regularise all temporary employees, implementation of 5- day work per week in Banking Industry, immediate withdrawal of the recent DFS/Govt directives on performance review and PLI, which threaten job security, create division and discrimination amongst employees and officers, violate the 8th Joint Note, and undermine PSB’s autonomy, safety of Bank officers/ staff against the assault/ abuses by unruly banking public, fill up the post of workmen/ Officer Directors in PSBs, resolution of residual issues pending with IBA, amend Gratuity Act to increase the ceiling to Rs 25 lakhs on the lines of Scheme for Government employees along with exemption from income tax, avoid recovery of income tax on staff welfare benefits given to employees and officers on concessional terms and the Managements to bear the same, maintain a minimum of 51% of Equity Capital in IDBI Bank by Government, stop Micromanagement of PSBs by DFS on policy matters affecting service conditions of employees and officers and undermining bilateralism, stop outsourcing permanent jobs in Banks and stop unfair Labour practices in Banking Industry.
Need for adequate recruitment in Banks: Banks are public utility organisations serving large number of people of our country on a daily basis. Hence Banks to be provided with adequate staff to serve the customers and general banking public. But in the last one decade and more, we find that the Banks are not recruiting adequate staff in the Banks.
There is an acute shortage of staff in the Branches and hence employees are unable to extend satisfactory customer services. Public sector banks are implementing all the schemes of the Government and PSBs are not provided with sufficient staff to serve the customers. Since 2012 about 50% reduction in the clerical staff and officers has been observed in the banks. Now, to press for these above issues the United Forum of Bank Unions has given the call for All India Bank strike for 2 days (On March 24-25).
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