Is
it back to the days of strikes and bandhs and the
threat to paralyse nation-wide banking services for employee
unions?
Banking services were paralysed today as employees of
banks, whose employee unions are affiliated to the nine-union
umbrella United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), went on strike
demanding revision of appointment terms, fresh recruitments,
additional pension option benefits.
Simultaneously
the demanded a total ban on outsourcing and merger of
public sector banks, opening of more branches by nationalised
banks, continuance of the ceiling of 10 per cent on voting
rights for foreign investors in private banks and no interference
on trade unions rights.
Profullo
Kumar Patnaik, convener, has UFBU threatened that the
agitation would not be called-off unless the government
agreed to acquiesce to the demands.
Criticising
the Indian Banks Association for its tough stance, Patnaik
said he expected that "good sense" would prevail
on both the government and IBA after the day's token strike
and warned that the unions would go on an indefinite strike
if their demands were not met.
UFBU
member unions include the All India Bank Employees Association
(AIBEA), All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC),
National Confederation of Bank Employees (NCBE), All India
Bank Officers Association (AIBOA), Bank Employees Federation
of India (BEFI), Indian National Bank Employees Congress
(INBEC), Indian National Bank Officers Congress (INBOC),
National Organisation of Bank Workers (NOBW) and National
Organisation of Bank Officers (NOBO).
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