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Bank Employees Anticipate 5-Day Work Week as Key Approval Remains Pending

Bank workers’ demands for a 5-day workweek are expected to be met shortly because the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and employee unions have already inked an agreement on the subject. The bank personnel anticipate receiving government clearance later in 2024; as of right now, only that is pending. The United Forum of Bank Unions and other bank employee unions have long advocated for a five-day workweek that excludes Saturdays. They guarantee that this won’t result in fewer hours spent providing customer service. A memorandum of understanding was subsequently signed in December 2023 between bank unions and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), which comprises both government-run and private institutions. A proposal for a 5-day workweek was included in this agreement, pending government approval.

The IBA and bank unions then signed the 9th Joint Note on March 8, 2024. The shift to a 5-day workweek with Saturdays and Sundays off was stated in the Joint Note, which was endorsed by the All India Bank Officers’ Confederation and the IBA. The government has the last say, even though the IBA and bank unions have reached an agreement. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which controls interbank transactions and banking hours, would also be consulted on the plan. The administration hasn’t set a formal timeframe for that. A few bank employees, however, said that they anticipate receiving the government’s warning by the end of this year or the beginning of 2025.

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Saturdays will be recognized as official holidays under Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act if they are authorized. It is stated that should the 5-day work week be adopted, the government will publish revised working hours that will extend the workday by forty minutes, from 9:45 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Currently, the second and fourth Saturdays are closed for bank branches. Since 2015, bank unions have called for annual leave that includes all Saturdays and Sundays. In accordance with the terms of the 10th Bipartite Settlement, which was signed in 2015, the government, RBI, and IBA decided to make the second and fourth Saturdays holidays.