24 August,2026 11:18 AM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Representational Image. File pic.
The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) has threatened to go on a nationwide strike on September 11 over the delay in implementing five-day banking, differences over the performance-linked incentive scheme, and several pending demands, including pension-related issues, according to news agency PTI.
The proposed strike would impact banking services, especially in public sector banks for four days, as September 11 is a Friday, and September 14 is a holiday on account of Ganesh Chaturthi in many states.
UFBU, an umbrella body of nine bank employees' and officers' unions, has also threatened a three-day subsequent nationwide strike beginning September 28, coinciding with the half-yearly closure. It further stated that if their demands are unmet then it would lead to an indefinite strike from October 26 onwards.
The decision on the bank strike was taken at a meeting held on Sunday, following what the unions described as the government's "negative attitude" towards their key demands, the UFBU said in a statement.
On five-day banking, the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) had agreed to the proposal as part of the 12th Bipartite Settlement/9th Joint Note signed on March 8, 2024, under which working hours would be increased by 40 minutes from Monday to Friday, as per PTI.
The proposal was subsequently recommended to the government, but has remained pending for more than two years, the UFBU stated.
The unions have also objected to the government's PLI scheme for bank officers in Scale IV and above, saying it differs from the understanding reached with the IBA that performance-linked incentive would be linked to the overall performance of individual banks and would be uniform for employees and officers up to Scale VII.
Under the government's scheme, officers in Scale IV and above could receive PLI of up to 365 days of basic pay based on individual performance, while workmen employees and officers up to Scale III would receive a maximum of 15 days' basic pay plus dearness allowance, it said.
The issue of PLI is currently under conciliation before the Chief Labour Commissioner (CLC) following the strike call issued by the UFBU and is also pending before the Delhi High Court, UFBU claimed.
The UFBU further alleged that despite the pendency of conciliation proceedings and its offer to hold bilateral discussions with the IBA, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) has advised banks to implement the government's performance-linked incentive scheme.
The UFBU alleged crediting of performance-linked incentive under the DFS scheme has now actually commenced in the banks, which is in violation of the status quo obligation during conciliation proceedings.
The UFBU argued that the present PLI scheme suggested by the DFS would disproportionately benefit a small section of officers and weaken the principle of uniformity in incentives across cadres.
The other residual demands, including updation and improvement of pension, a uniform dearness allowance formula for all pensioners and an option for employees covered under the National Pension System (NPS) to switch to the old pension scheme (OPS), also remained unresolved, as per PTI.
(With inputs from PTI)
