Five-day banking week never up for negotiation, say govt sources

As bank unions prepare to go ahead with the three-day strike with a five-day work week being a key demand, government sources have said that this issue was never up for discussion, even in previous wage negotiations.

“Even when the wage negotiations with bank unions were underway earlier, the issue of five-day work week was never agreed upon and it was not even a negotiating tool,” said senior government sources.

Bank unions have been demanding a five-day work week from Monday to Friday on the grounds that bank employees have long working hours. Further, both the Reserve Bank of India and the department of financial services also have a five-day work week. The United Forum of Bank Unions, which claims to represent 90% of the banking workforce and includes seven bank unions, has called for a three-day nationwide strike from September 28 to 30.

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Sources pointed out that the Centre has already agreed to several demands such as family pension in the previous round of wage negotiations in 2022. Further, the government has also decided to keep the proposed performance linked incentive (PLI) scheme in abeyance.

“Despite the Government having resolved one of the two major demands of the union, and sustained conciliatory engagement, a one-day strike was held on September 11, with a further three-day strike now scheduled from September 28 to 30, and an indefinite strike proposed from October 26, on the single demand of a five-day workweek for banks,” a recent statement by the finance ministry had noted, while appealing to bank employees, to ensure uninterrupted banking services.

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Currently, the second and fourth Saturday of every month is a bank holiday.  The proposal for a five-day working week has been up for discussion for over two years now and unions contend that the 12th bipartite settlement had formally committed to a five-day banking week.