Who’s protesting
The two-day strike on December 16 and 17 was called by the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU). UFBU is an umbrella body of nine unions, including AIBOC, All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and National Organisation of Bank Workers (NOBW).
Why?
The union wants the govt not to table the Bank Privatisation Bill (Banking Laws Amendment Bill, 2021) during this session of the Parliament. The government had in Budget 2021-22 announced its intent to take up privatisation of two public sector banks (PSBs) during the year.
Impact
Most public sector banks will remain closed today and tomorrow. Since the following two days are weekends, these PSBs will remain shut for transactions for four days in a row. Most of the banks, including State Bank of India (SBI), have already cautioned their customers about the strike’s possible impact on banking operations like cheque clearance and fund transfer.