Bank employees affiliated to the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) held a protest march and staged a demonstration in Hubballi on Friday, demanding introduction of a five-day banking week and urging the Centre to resolve their long-pending demands.

The protest was held in response to the call for nationwide strike on September 11 by the UFBU. The employees raised slogans demanding that the government implement five-day banking, which they said had already been agreed upon in March 2024 settlement and subsequently recommended to the government.

Addressing the protesters, the union leaders said the demand for five-day banking had been pending for nearly two-and-a-half years despite repeated discussions with the IBA and the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance.

They said several rounds of discussions and conciliation meetings held in the days preceding the strike had failed to produce a definite timeline or concrete assurance from the government on the implementation of the demand.

The unions said that during the conciliation proceedings, the DFS had informed them that the proposal for five-day banking was “under consideration” and appealed to them to defer the strike. However, the UFBU maintained that it could not withdraw the strike without a clear commitment or time-bound assurance.

The protesters also raised several other demands, including adequate recruitment of clerical and sub-staff, restoration of the Old Pension Scheme in place of the National Pension System, an increase in the gratuity ceiling, pension updation and uniform dearness allowance, revision of ex-gratia for pre-November 2022 pensioners and extension of the benefit to employees of private banks.

The unions also demanded filling of Workman and Officer Director posts, introduction of a Leave Bank and reimbursement of medical insurance premiums for retired employees by banks.