DIMAPUR, AUG 12 (NPN): United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) has demanded implementation of a five-day working week in banks, saying government delay has left bank employees and officers facing staff shortages, rising workloads and increasing stress.
In a statement, UFBU said bank employees and officers staged demonstrations across the country on Wednesday to press the demand and warned that further agitational programmes, including strike action, could follow if not addressed.
UFBU said banks earlier operated full working days from Monday to Friday and half-day working on Saturdays. In 2015, the government and Indian Banks’ Association agreed to declare the second and fourth Saturdays holidays, while the remaining Saturdays continued as working days. It said the arrangement was introduced amid growing digital banking and reduced customer footfall, with an understanding that the remaining Saturdays would subsequently be considered for holiday status.
During the wage revision agreement in March 2024, IBA agreed to increase customer banking hours by 40 minutes daily in exchange for declaring the remaining Saturdays holidays. The proposal was subsequently recommended to the Finance Ministry for approval but has remained pending for over two years, UFBU said.
The forum said it had observed a nationwide bank strike on January 27, 2026, to press the government to honour the commitment made in the 2024 agreement.
UFBU said acute staff shortages and growing business volumes were increasing pressure on employees, with many working beyond normal hours. It also claimed officers were being called to work on Saturdays and Sundays.
The forum maintained that a five-day working week was a reasonable demand that would improve work-life balance without reducing customer banking hours, as employees had agreed to work an additional 40 minutes each day. It noted that five-day working was already followed by central and state governments, the Reserve Bank of India, Life Insurance Corporation and several private companies and industries. UFBU termed the denial of the same arrangement to bank employees unfair. It said its leaders would soon decide on further agitational programmes and possible strike action, and called upon employees and officers to remain prepared for intensified protests.
Thursday, August 13, 2026