India’s largest bank, State Bank of India (SBI), has warned its customers that banking services may be affected on February 12 due to a nationwide bank strike.
Reports from Reuters and other news agencies say that major banks like SBI and IDBI have received official strike notices from bank unions.
Although the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has not declared a public holiday and bank branches will remain open, many services may be disrupted.
Counter-related work such as cash transactions and cheque clearing could face major delays because many employees will be on strike.
Reasons Behind the Bank Employees’ Strike
The main reason for the strike is the four new labor codes introduced by the central government.
The All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and other unions believe that these new laws, which replace 29 old labor laws, will weaken the basic rights of workers.
According to the unions, the new rules may make it harder to register trade unions and could allow management to impose unfair demands on employees.
Demand for a Five-Day Work Week and Other Issues
Bank employees are also demanding a five-day work week with Saturdays off. They say that having two days off every week is necessary to improve work-life balance, especially because of rising mental stress and heavy workloads.
Other issues like salary differences and the need to fill vacant posts are also contributing to the strike.
Impact on Customers and Banking Services
Bank of Baroda stated in a stock exchange filing that it will try to keep services running smoothly, but some delays are expected. Services like cheque clearing, cash deposits, and other banking operations may be affected.
Customers with urgent banking work are advised to complete it before February 12. However, there is good news: digital services such as mobile banking, UPI,
and net banking will continue to work normally, so small and online transactions should not face any major problems.
