No commitment given to bank unions on five-day work week by Finance Ministry: report

Rejecting claims of bank employee unions regarding a commitment to implement a five-day work week, government sources said there was no commitment on the issue from the Finance Ministry.

Bank employee unions under the United Forum of Bank Unions have announced a three-day strike from September 28 to press for their demands, including a five-day work week.

Unions have claimed that 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 were to be increased by 40 minutes from Monday to Friday. The proposal was subsequently recommended to the government, and it is under consideration, sources said.

Besides, sources said, many pending union issues were resolved, including a revision in family pension for bank retirees and the grant of a pension option to resignees.