Next week’s bank strike: Branches could be closed for 4 consecutive days
The four-day-long bank holiday is likely to affect banking operations next week as most branches could be open only for three days in the entire week.
All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC) General Secretary Rupam Roy announced today that they would go on an all-India bank strike if the Central government fails to address their key demands. These include recruiting adequate staff, from messengers to clerical employees, and introducing a four-day workweek in line with banking systems in developed countries. Speaking to the press in Siliguri, Mr. Roy stated that the AIBOC has initiated agitations across various platforms, including social media, to urge the government to address their demands.
“If the government does not prioritise recruitment and the implementation of a four-day banking system, we will organise a nationwide strike,” Mr Roy asserted. Mr Roy criticised the lack of recruitment in the banking sector, noting that no messengers have been hired in over a decade and clerical staff recruitment remains inadequate. “There are several branches with only one officer and one or two clerks. This makes it extremely difficult to serve customers. Contractual recruitment of messengers and outsourcing customer service points (CSPs) have also contributed to rising fraud cases,” Mr Roy said. He added: “If this situation persists, the entire banking system will collapse.”
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Comparing staff strength, Mr Roy pointed out disparities between SBI and private banks like HDFC. “HDFC has 2,13,527 employees for 8,500 branches, while SBI has only 2,32,296 employees managing 22,500 branches,” he explained. Mr Roy was in Siliguri to attend the 41st Annual General Meeting of the Administrative Zonal Committee of the State Bank of India Officers’ Association (SBIOA, Bengal Circle). Other key leaders present included SBIOA President Ranganath Sanyal, AIBOC WB State Unit Secretary Shubhajyoti Chattopadhyay, Deputy General Manager of SBI , Siliguri Zone as Chief Guest and Chief Regional Secretary of the Siliguri Administrative Zonal Committee Aritra Saha.
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