Bank strike today: Services hit as unions go on day-long protest against govt's 'anti-people' policies

Bank strike today: Services at several banks across the country has been impacted on Wednesday as unions have gone on a day-long strike. Thousands of bank employees went on a strike called by 10 central trade unions. They have stated government's "anti-people" policies as the reason for the bank strike today. Activities such as cash withdrawal and deposit in several banks have been impacted due to the strike, as mentioned in news agencies.

The news of the strike in banks had already started making the rounds last month. Most of the lenders had informed their customers in advance about the strike given by All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA), All India Bank Officers' Association (AIBOA), BEFI, INBEF, INBOC and Bank Karmachari Sena Mahasangh (BKSM), and its impact on banking services.

AIBEA general secretary C H Venkatachalam said that bank employees had extended support to the nationwide strike call. "We have been opposing government policies on bank merger, privatisation, fee hike and other wage-related issues," he said, as mentioned in a report in PTI.

State Bank of India had informed the stock exchanges and said that only a few of their employees have participated in the bank strike 2020. "The membership of our bank employees in unions participating in the strike is very few, so the impact of the strike on banks operation will be minimal," it said.

The Bank of Baroda had, however, acknowledged earlier that its services could be hit during the bank strike on January 8. "The bank is taking necessary steps for the smooth functioning of bank's branches/offices on the day of the strike, in the event the strike materializes, the functioning of the branches/offices may be affected/paralysed," it had said in a regulatory filing.

Syndicate Bank also asked its customers to bear with them during the January 8 bank strike 2020.

All India Reserve Bank Employees Association (AIRBEA) and All India Reserve Bank Workers Federation (AIRBWF) have also joined the strike. Trade unions INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF, UTUC along with various sectoral independent federations and associations had adopted a declaration in September last year to go on the nationwide strike on January 8.

The trade unions have claimed around 25 crore people are participating in the strike to protest against the government's "anti-people" policies.

Also read: Bank strike on January 8: ATMs, branch services likely to take a hit

Also read: Bank strike on Jan 8: SBI predicts minimal impact; Syndicate Bank assures steps for smooth operation