It is reasonable to expect that tomorrow's customers will have to wait, or else be shut out if they come to visit bank branches. Even though the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has not declared February 12 a holiday, a number of public sector banks (PSBs), including State Bank of India (SBI) and Bank of Baroda, have filed regulatory documents, saying that they may be "impacted to a limited extent" as a result of a strike.
Why are Bank Unions Protesting?
It is a strike driven by both national labor issues and sectoral pressure. The primary reasons include:
- Stopping the Four Labour Codes: Unions contend that the new codes have a chilling effect on workers’ rights, make it hard to register a trade union, and give employers too much power to stop workers.
- Requirement: An old demand for a 5-Day Work Week - all Saturdays should be holidays in the banks (in line with the RBI and LIC).
- Fears surrounding the Privatization: Reluctance over the privatization of the public sector Banks and sale of IDBI Bank to foreign investors.
- Pension & Recruitment: Calls For Restoring Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and immediate recruitment of vacancies in many bank cadres.
Who is Participating?
Major bank unions which represent both clerical staff and officers have served strike notices with major banks with striking notices for both personnel have served on employees and officers.
- All India Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA)
- AIBOA (All India Bank Officers Association)
- BEFI (Bank Employees Federation of India)
- United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) members.
Workers from nationalized banks and a handful of former private sector banks such as Federal Bank, Karur Vysya Bank and IDBI Bank are projected to join the walkout.
Which Services Will Be Hit?
Digital channels should still exist but it will be physical branch services that will most suffer:
- Over-the-Counter Transactions: Cash deposits, withdrawals and passbook updates at your branch's point are to be difficult things.
- Cheque Clearance: Physical clearing of cheques may be time-consuming at least 24-48 hours or so, which will delay business transactions.
- Loan Processing: All transactions will probably grind to an end for the day as verifying and sanctioning new loans come into effect.
- ATM Cash Availability: ATMs will run, but in high-traffic, or rural areas they will run out of cash due to the absence of replenishment personnel.
What stays open?
Mobile banking, UPI (Google Pay, PhonePe) and Net Banking will be expected to operate normally. Private sector behemoths like HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank are not in the strike and will probably operate as usual.
