The strike actions, which will begin with a two-day All India Strike on January 31 and February 1, 2020, will be followed by a three-day strike on March 11, 12 and 13. If the IBA still refuses to read the writing on the wall and continues with adamant anti-labour attitude, the bank employees, including the officers, will go on an indefinite strike from April 1, 2020. The UFBU wants to make it clear to the public that the sole responsibility of such forced strike actions lies on the IBA.

The fact is that since the IBA adopted a very rigid approach in resolving the wage revision demands during the bipartite talks held on January 13, the UFBU met thereafter and decided to launch intensified and extensive agitational programme and strike actions in order to highlight the demands and express its strong protest.

The leaders of the United Forum of Bank Unions in an appeal to the bank employees and officers said: “We are sure that all our unions all over the country would understand the seriousness of the situation, given the government’s policies towards labour and take all-out steps to implement the programmes successfully. It also made a fervent call to hold immediate meetings of bank employees and officers at all levels and undertake suitable plan of action to implement the programmes, assuring that ‘if we fight, we will succeed’.

The genuine demands of the bank employees and officers for a fair wage revision settlement are as follows:

• Wage Revision Settlement at 20 per cent hike on Pay-slip Components with Adequate Loading Thereof.
• Five-Day Banking.
• Merger of Special Allowance with Basic Pay.
• Scrap New Pension Scheme (NPS).
• Updation of Pension.
• Improvement in Family Pension.
• Allocation to Staff Welfare Fund based on Operating Profits
• Exemption from Income Tax on Retiral Benefits without Ceiling.
• Uniform definition of Business Hours, Lunch Hour, etc, in Branches.
• Introduction of Leave Bank.
• Defined Working Hours for Officers.
• Equal Wage for Equal Work for Contract Employees/ Business Correspondents.

The UFBU has worked out a detailed plan of action to enable the bank employees and officers to make the agitations a resounding success. From January 20, there will be work to rule and withdrawal of extra cooperation and on the same day there will be centralised demonstrations. From January 21 to March 31, there will be mass signature campaign to be followed again by centralised demonstrations on January 24. On January 25 there will be display of posters with centralised demonstrations on January 27.

There will be press meet on January 29 or on 30 as per the convenience of the state units and on January 30 there will be black badge wearing and centralised demonstrations. The first phase of the actions will culminate into two-day All India Bank Strike on January 31 and February 1. The protest rallies will also ensure submission of memorandum to district collector/ governor for onward transmission to the prime minister of India.

The second phase of strike actions will start with centralised demonstrations on February 6, to be followed by boycotting of official functions on 10th, centralised demonstrations on 11th, black badge wearing and centralised demonstrations on 17th, centralised demonstrations again on 20th, handing over of memorandum to local MPs, governor(s) and others on 24th to 29th, centralised demonstrations on 26th, candle light protest on March 3rd, press meet and dharna at all state capitals on March 7th along with centralised demonstrations on March 9th. The second phase will culminate into a three-day All India Strike on March 11, 12 and 13.

The third and final phase will begin with the submission of memorandum to district collector/ governor and other prominent personalities on March 13th, centralised demonstrations 18th, Parliament morcha and centralised demonstrations at all district headquarters on March 23rd, candle light protest on 27th and centralised demonstrations and press meet on March 31th. The final phase will culminate into an indefinite All India Bank Strike from April 1, 2020. (IPA Service)