Bank strike hits operations in Telangana

On Tuesday, customers of public sector banks (PSBs) were worst hit as thousands of PSB employees and officers across Telangana joined a one-day all-India strike called by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU).

Although branches were open, customers faced difficulties doing business as staff, except for a handful of senior managers, were part of the UFBU strike demanding the implementation of the five-day working week. While the use and popularity of alternative channels such as ATMs and online banking continues to increase, branch-level banking remains important for many customers. It includes checking deposits, cash deposits and withdrawals, as well as searching for information about various products, especially loans.

P.Venkataramaiah, senior leader of Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI), said that the strike was all-out and employees of PSBs as well as a large number of regional rural banks were also participating. BEFI is one of the nine unions that make up the UFBU.

In Hyderabad and many cities, bank employees came together as part of the strike and called on the government to implement the five-day working week as it has been several years since the Indian Banks Association accepted UFBU’s demand to declare all Saturdays as holidays within a month. Currently banks are closed on the second and fourth Saturdays.

For customers, the strike meant no access to branch-level services for four days; because banks were closed on the fourth Saturday, Sunday, January 25, and January 26, on January 24, for Republic Day.