edited by: Mohammad Haris
Last Update: March 01, 2023, 14:23 IST
At present, bank employees work on alternate Saturdays in addition to the normal weekdays.
Once the proposal is finally accepted, the government will have to notify all Saturdays as holidays under Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.
Bank employees are likely to get a 2-day weekly off soon as the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) is considering the demand of bank unions for a five-day working week, according to media reports. However, reports say that working hours may be extended by 50 minutes each day in a 5-day working week.
Talks are on between IBA and United Forum of Bank Employees (UFBE) and according to reports, the association has agreed in principle for a 5-day working week.
S Nagarajan, General Secretary of all India was cited by the Bank Officers’ Association times of India Stating that the government will have to notify all Saturdays as holidays under Section 25 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.
Currently, bank employees work on alternate Saturdays.
He said that the government as the owner of public sector banks also has a say. RBI also needs to accept the proposal. According to the TOI report, the employees will need to work 40 minutes more daily from 9.45 am to 5.30 pm.
Bank Holidays in March 2023
Banks will remain closed for 12 days including second and fourth Saturdays and Sundays in the month of March. While some bank holidays will be observed nationwide, others will be local holidays. It may be noted that banks in India observe gazetted holidays. While all banks are closed on public holidays, some banks celebrate regional festivals and holidays.
There are many festivals in the month of March 2023 like Holi, Chaitra Navratri, Ram Navami, and many more.
The Reserve Bank of India has grouped its holidays into three brackets – holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act; holiday and real time gross settlement holiday under the Negotiable Instruments Act; and closure of accounts by banks. However, it should be noted that bank holidays differ from state to state and are not observed by all banking companies. Banking holidays also depend on the festivals being celebrated in specific states or the notification of specific occasions in those states.
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