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Seven unions of bank employees, under the banner of the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), have announced an indefinite strike from October 26, 2026, raising a four-point charter of demands, including the implementation of five-day banking, a promise made to them in 2024.

Talking to reporters here on Tuesday (September 1, 2026), UFBU leaders said that as part of their agitation, all-India bank strikes would be held on September 11, September 28, September 29 and September 30, as well as a "continuous, indefinite" strike starting October 26 if the demands are not met.

Maintaining that the unions were forced to undertake the agitation due to the actions of the government and bank managements, the UFBU leaders said the promises made to them were not implemented.

According to them, in an agreement signed in March 2024, bank managements had agreed that Saturdays would be declared holidays and unions had agreed that working hours would be increased by 40 minutes from Monday to Friday. "This agreement has been recommended to the Finance Ministry, Government of India, for their approval. It has been more than two years now, but the issue is still pending with the Finance Ministry," UFBU leaders said.

They also urged the Union government to withdraw the “unilateral and discriminatory” performance-linked incentive scheme, prescribed by the Union Department of Financial Services (DFS). They said the cost of the Incentive paid to 5% of the staff is far more than the total Incentive paid to the other 95% of staff, which they alleged was resulting in huge discrimination.

“Many of them have not been paid any incentive at all,” union leaders said, adding that the DFS’s scheme is contrary to the mutually and bilaterally agreed uniform scheme. “The DFS scheme seeks to divide the composite team of the workforce in the banks, who are today working as a unified team to achieve the targets and business parameters," they said.

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