Bank employees strike in Shahdol over five-day week demand

Banking services came to a standstill in Shahdol today as bank employees went on strike demanding a five-day banking week and several other long-pending issues. The nationwide strike, called by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) for 11 September, saw employees across public and private sector banks in the district halt work, with a protest rally organised by State Bank of India staff from the Rajendra Talkies branch to Gandhi Chowraha.

The strike disrupted cash transactions, cheque deposits, and branch-level banking operations across Shahdol district. While digital banking services, ATM facilities and online transactions were expected to remain largely functional, the impact on related banking infrastructure depended on individual bank arrangements.

The central demand of the striking employees is the implementation of a five-day banking system. According to UFBU, a consensus on this issue was reached in March 2024, but government approval has remained pending since then. The union stated that the prolonged delay has caused growing resentment among bank staff.

Ahead of the strike, UFBU held multiple rounds of discussions with officials from the government, the Ministry of Finance, the Indian Banks' Association (IBA), and the Labour Department. During these meetings, authorities appealed to the union to call off the strike, but UFBU decided to proceed as no firm timeline was provided for the implementation of five-day banking.

Besides the five-day week, bank employees have raised several other demands including increased recruitment, a shift from the National Pension System (NPS) to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS), improvements to pension and gratuity provisions, and medical insurance coverage for retired employees.

The strike call by UFBU, an umbrella body representing various bank employee unions, underscored the frustration over unresolved labour issues in the banking sector. Despite assurances and negotiations stretching over months, the absence of concrete action prompted employees to take to the streets. The impact of the strike was visible across bank branches in Shahdol, with limited or no counter services available to customers throughout the day.