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The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) has decided to call a nationwide strike on September 11 over several pending demands, including the delay in implementing a five-day banking system, disagreements regarding the Performance-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, and pension-related issues. If the strike goes ahead, banking services—particularly those of public sector banks—could be disrupted for four days in many parts of the country. September 11 falls on a Friday, followed by two days of bank holidays. Additionally, some states will observe a holiday for Ganesh Chaturthi on September 14. The UFBU represents nine bank employee and officer unions. The apex body has also warned of another three-day nationwide strike starting September 28, coinciding with the half-yearly account-closing period.

**Demand for 5-Day Banking**
The UFBU stated that a decision has also been made to launch an indefinite strike starting October 26 if the government and bank management fail to address their demands. The decision was taken during a meeting held on Sunday. According to the unions, the government has adopted a negative approach toward their key demands. Regarding the five-day banking system, the organization noted that the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) had agreed to the proposal under the 12th Bipartite Settlement/9th Joint Note signed on March 8, 2024. This agreement entailed increasing daily working hours by 40 minutes from Monday to Friday. The UFBU stated that although the proposal was subsequently recommended to the government, it has remained pending for over two years.

**PLI Scheme Concerns**
The unions have also raised objections to the government's PLI scheme applicable to bank officers at Scale-IV and above. They state that this differs from the consensus reached with the IBA, under which the Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) was to be linked to the overall performance of the individual bank and applied uniformly to employees and officers up to Scale-VII.

The UFBU stated that under the government's plan, officers at Scale-IV and above could receive a PLI equivalent to up to 365 days of basic pay based on individual performance. In contrast, workmen employees and officers up to Scale-III could receive a maximum of 15 days of basic pay plus dearness allowance. It claimed that the PLI issue is currently undergoing conciliation proceedings before the Chief Labour Commissioner (CLC)—following the UFBU's strike call—and is also pending before the Delhi High Court.

The UFBU alleged that despite the pending conciliation proceedings and an offer to hold bilateral talks with the IBA, the Department of Financial Services (DFS) advised banks to implement the government's performance-based incentive scheme. The UFBU noted that payments under the DFS's performance-based incentive scheme have now actually commenced in banks. It alleged that this violates the obligation to maintain the status quo during conciliation proceedings.

**Other Demands**
According to the statement, the current PLI scheme proposed by the DFS would disproportionately benefit a small section of officers and undermine the principle of parity in incentives across different cadres. It stated that other pending demands include the updation and improvement of pensions, a uniform dearness allowance calculation method for all pensioners, and the option for employees covered under the National Pension System (NPS) to switch to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). These demands also remain unresolved.

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