Bank unions call for strike on February 28

‘Banks incurred huge costs incurred on

demonetisation, Jan Dhan & Aadhaar’

Coimbatore, February 7:  The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) has given a call to its members to strike work on February 28.

The strike call, according to Thomas Franco, UFBU Convener and Senior Vice-President of the All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC), is to voice their displeasure over the government’s indifference to their issues, which they contend “have accumulated and remain unaddressed.”

Alleging the government of remaining deaf to their plea even while they had stood by the government on different issues — be it handling the pain of demonetisation, implementing government schemes or opening Jan-Dhan accounts — the UFBU, represented by nine trade unions, said that “the government’s indifference had forced the employees and officers of various banks to take this extreme step.”

“We are on a war path after demonetisation,” he said, sharing a copy of the union’s 12-point charter of demands.

Demanding compensation for the losses due to Jan Dhan and demonetisation, Franco said banks incurred huge costs on account of opening 25 crore Jan-Dhan accounts, linking Aadhaar and providing RuPay cards.

“Demonetisation further added to the expenditure in various ways such as towards transit of withdrawn currency, security, disruption in regular banking activities and so on.”

Much of the issues were oft-repeated ones such as the demand to halt privatisation of public sector banks; amendment to the Gratuity Act so as to make gratuity uniform for all (Central government employees and those in the banking sector); appointment of employee director and officer director in public sector banks; recruitment; recoveries from wilful defaulters; and a stop to outsourcing of core banking business.

The UFBU Convener also insisted on the need for initiating immediate discussion on wage revision.

Shut down SBI branches till the supply of cash gets normalised: Union

Chennai, January 14 (IANS): State Bank of India (SBI) can shut down its branches till the supply of cash gets normalised and staff are not put to risk to face the ire of banking public, a top union leader said.

“We have suggested to the SBI management to down the branch shutters till the supply of cash gets normalised. It is better to close down the branches for some time than the staff face the ire of the public for no fault of theirs,” D. Thomas Franco Rajendra Dev, Senior Vice President of the All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC), told IANS.

Dev wondered how his comrades in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are saying that cash supplies there are better but such views are not heard from his comrades in other states.

“It is strange that Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is not divulging as to the amount of cash supplied state­wise and bank­wise. What is the big secrecy to be safeguarded after the cash has been distributed to states and banks?”

According to Dev, in many SBI branches cash is being rationed amongst the account holders. The RBI has been issuing empty statements about currency supplies being comfortable and currency being sent to rural areas whereas in reality it is not so, Dev charged.

He said people in Tamil Nadu will not be able to celebrate Pongal festival properly due to cash crunch.

- IANS

Why one day strike and then 4 days strike?

AIBOC reveal in their circular ..........

Comrades, we have been receiving lot many queries about the decision of single day strike of 7th January, 2015.
 We would like to inform the background which led to the decision of one day strike.
 IBA, vide their Letter No. CIR/HR & IR/XBPS-1/996 dated 2nd December, 2014,
had advised the member banks to update their respective Boards on the present status 
of the wage negotiations developments, its financial implications and if felt necessary,
 revisit the mandate. 

This being a very serious development was discussed in the Working Committee Meeting of Confederation held on 8th December, 2014, at Delhi. 
The Central Office drafted a letter and sent to all its Affiliates for onward submission 
to the Management of the respective Banks to thwart IBA’s tactics of delaying Wage Revision 
and also to obviate the possibility of tinkering with the earlier mandate. 
It was also decided that the same stand would be taken by our Representatives on the boards, 
when the agenda comes for discussion. 

Comrades, this indeed is a very grave development which cannot be ignored. 
The UFBU Constituents met in Mumbai, on 17th December, 2014, subsequent to conciliation talks.
 One of the constituent of UFBU apprised of having taken a decision to call for one day strike 
on this issue and wanted other constituents to join the strike.

 We expressed our view and apprehensions over the effectiveness of one day strike, 
as the issue would have been placed and discussed in many Bank’s Boards by then. 
Since the Affiliate was firm to go on one day strike in first week of January, 2015, 
UFBU decided to observe the strike on 7th January, 2015, for the sake of solidarity 
and to avoid any confusion. 

Comrades, the call of four days strike from 21st to 24th January, 2015 is unprecedented 
and unheard in the history of Banking Industry as a whole. 
The dates are preceding two holidays as 25th January being Sunday and 
26th January a National Holiday. 
Consequently, the Banking will come to a grinding halt for six days. 
Our membership have long being demanding an action like this, but comrades, 
for winning a bigger battle, many small wars have to be won. 
A lot of preparations are required to be undertaken for making our call a tremendous success. 
A thorough action programme is required to be chalked out for preparation at the grass root level. 
Let each one of us make it a mission to make the strike call a huge success 
so that its impact shakes the walls of apathy of the higher authorities. 
This is our fervent appeal to each member of ours, to implement 
all the joint agitational calls given by UFBU religiously.