Banking Alert: Banks shut for four days, check dates and reasons

Bank employees are set to go on strike on January 27 over their demands. Due to this, banking activities will be affected for four full days.

Bank strike January 27: If you have any bank-related work, get it done now as banks will be closed for four days. Bank employee unions have called for a nationwide strike on January 27. Due to this, banks will be closed for a total of four days, not one or two. Banking operations will not take place from January 24 to January 27. In such a situation, it is better to get your bank-related work done now. Bank unions had announced the strike on January 27, much in advance. So far, there is no information about any talks between the government and the bank unions, hence the strike is confirmed.

Online services will remain operational

Under the existing system, banks remain closed on Sundays and on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month. January 24 is a Saturday, followed by Sunday, January 25, and Monday, January 26, which is Republic Day, a public holiday. Due to the proposed strike on January 27, banks will remain closed for four consecutive days. There will be no banking operations in bank branches. However, online services will remain operational. Digital channels, including mobile banking, internet banking, and ATMs, will be functional.

Bank employees are going on strike demanding a 5-day banking system. For quite some time, bankers have been demanding that all Saturdays be declared holidays, but the government has not yet fulfilled their demand. An agreement has been reached between the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) and the bank unions on this matter. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha last year on July 25, the Finance Ministry had stated that the Indian Banks' Association had proposed to declare all Saturdays as holidays. Bank unions have also assured the government that work will not be affected by the 5-day banking system. The proposal states that bank employees will work an additional 40 minutes each day.

Agreement reached, nothing happened

The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) states that its main demand is the implementation of a five-day working week, which includes all Saturdays as holidays. It argues that this change was agreed upon with the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) during the salary revision settlement in March 2024, but it has not yet been notified for implementation. Bank unions believe that the 5-day banking system will boost employee morale, increase productivity, and allow the banking sector to align itself with modern working methods.

Workload is increasing

Bank employees have gone on strike several times before demanding a 5-day banking system. This proposal is under the purview of the Finance Ministry. The government, as well as the RBI, will have to approve this proposal. Bank employees argue that if all Saturdays are holidays in the RBI, LIC, and other government offices, why not in banks. The workload in banks has increased significantly in the recent past. The situation has become such that staying late and reaching the office early has become a daily routine for them. In such a scenario, 5-day banking is extremely necessary.