Bank Strike: All government banks including SBI (State Bank of India) have decided to go on a two-day strike, starting from tomorrow. Services at branches, particularly in PSUs, could be affected as several bank employees' unions have called for a two-day bank strike. Bank unions have decided to sit on strike on January 31 and February 1. This means banks will be closed for 3 days as February 3 is Sunday.

The Stata Bank of India (SBI) and other PSU banks have informed customers in regard to the 2-day bank strike from 31st January 2020.

To be noted, February 3 is Sunday, so it is expected that the banks may remain closed for back-to-back three days. So, all customers who have important banking related work pending are advised to finish it today itself.

According to reports, thousands of bank employees, who have been waiting for a pay hike since November 2017, are expected to join the strike.

The strike timing also coincides with the opening of the Budget session of the Parliament on February 1, when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will unveil the Union Budget for 2020-21.

The UFBU constitutes All India Bank Employees' Association, All India Bank Officers' Confederation, National Confederation of Bank Employees, All India Bank Officers' Association, Bank Employees Federation of India, Indian National Bank Employees Federation, Indian National Bank Officers' Congress, National Organisation Of Bank Workers and National Organisation of Bank Officers.

It has also called the strike a three-day strike from March 11, and if the demands are not met, the UFBU has threatened to go on an indefinite strike from April 1, 2020.

Why the bank strike:

Unions are demanding wage revision settlement at 20 percent hike on payslip components with adequate loading. In the past wage settlement, which was for the period November 1, 2012, to October 31, 2017, the employees got a 15 percent hike. The wage revision for employees of public sector banks is pending since November 2017.