A relief news has come out for millions of bank customers and professionals in the country. The three-day nationwide bank strike that began on Monday, September 28 has been called off. The decision comes after a crucial meeting between the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) and representatives of major bank unions. During the meeting, various demands were agreed upon between the two sides, following which the unions decided to call off the strike. With this, banking services will continue as normal across the country.

The trade unions had initially announced a complete shutdown from September 28 to September 30. If there was a strike, essential services like cheque clearing, cash withdrawal, issuance of drafts and passbook printing would have been severely affected in the last days of the month.

After positive talks On Sunday, the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) and the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) negotiated their demands in detail. A positive attitude was taken on many important issues in the meeting. After this, the unions have decided to postpone the strike keeping in mind the convenience of the common man. Many

After discussing the details in the meeting, a number of important issues were agreed upon:
The issue of five-day working: A significant progress has been made on the pending demand of bank employees to declare '5-day banking' and a holiday on all Saturdays. The Indian Banks' Association (IBA) and the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) will immediately form a high-level committee.

This committee will study in depth all the practical options for this demand and discuss with the concerned stakeholders. The Bank will strive to find a balanced solution that is acceptable to both customers and bank personnel, giving priority to the convenience and interests of the customers.

PLI Scheme for Scale IV and above:
Negotiations will be initiated with IBA to send a proposal of change to the government to address the objections of the unions regarding the PLI scheme for officers of Scale IV and above.

Other Pending Issues:
Negotiations between the two parties will continue to resolve the remaining issues mentioned in the minutes of March 8, 2024. Since a positive consensus has been reached on these issues, the UFBU has officially announced the postponement of its agitation and strike. The letter has been signed by C.H. Venkatachalam, Rupam Roy, L. Chandrasekhar, Sanjay Khan, Debashish Basu Chowdhury, Prem Makkar and O.P. Sharma. A detailed circular will be issued soon in this regard.

If there was a strike, banks would have been closed for three consecutive days, causing a lot of trouble to both citizens and traders. However, after talks between the two sides on Sunday, the employee unions have agreed to postpone the proposed strike. From Monday, all bank branches will remain open and work will continue as before.

PC: Jagran