- UFBU maintains September 28–30 strike call; five-day banking remains the key unresolved demand
- Finance Ministry says PSBs and RRBs will function normally on Sunday, September 27
- RBI clears opening of bank branches, offices, ATM-linked branches and currency chests to ease customer disruption
- Government says PLI demand has been kept in abeyance; unions seek implementation of five-day banking
- Customers advised to complete critical branch-dependent transactions by September 25 and plan cash needs
- Internet banking, mobile banking, UPI and ATMs may provide continuity, but availability of individual services can vary
NE BANKING BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, NEW DELHI, SEPT 23
For bank customers, the next few days call for planning rather than panic. With the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) retaining its nationwide three-day strike call for September 28–30, the intervening September 26–27 weekend could otherwise have stretched the disruption in branch-based banking to five consecutive days. In a customer-focused intervention, however, the Finance Ministry has announced that public sector banks (PSBs) and regional rural banks (RRBs) will function normally on Sunday, September 27, with the Reserve Bank of India approving the opening of branches, offices, ATM-linked branches and currency chests.
The development comes as the government and bank managements continue to appeal to the unions to defer the strike, while the UFBU maintains that the action will proceed unless there is concrete progress on its principal demand for a five-day banking week.
A five-day banking question meets a five-day customer concern
The proposed strike is scheduled for September 28, 29 and 30, immediately following the weekend holidays of September 26 and 27. The timing is particularly significant because September 30 also marks the half-yearly closing of banks, potentially increasing the importance of time-sensitive branch and settlement-related transactions.
The UFBU has maintained that the five-day banking proposal remains unresolved. Following a conciliation meeting on September 22 involving the unions, Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), Department of Financial Services (DFS) and bank management representatives, the unions said they would proceed with the strike in the absence of concrete progress.
The government, meanwhile, has said that it has already acted on one of the unions’ two principal demands by keeping the Performance Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme in abeyance. The Finance Ministry has urged employees to pursue the remaining issues through dialogue.
September 27 becomes the crucial customer window
The Finance Ministry said the decision to keep PSBs and RRBs open on Sunday is intended to ensure that the banking requirements of citizens are not adversely affected for an extended period.
The RBI has approved the opening of all bank branches, offices, ATM-linked branches and currency chests on September 27.
For customers, this effectively creates an additional opportunity to complete important branch-dependent work before the proposed strike begins.
The Gujarat customer advisory issued in this connection has also urged account holders to complete important banking transactions, wherever possible, by September 25, plan their cash requirements in advance and use ATMs or cash recyclers according to their needs.
Customer checklist: What to do before September 28
Customers may consider completing in advance any transaction that specifically requires a branch visit, including urgent documentation, cash-related requirements and other time-sensitive banking work.
The advisory urges customers to:
- Complete important banking transactions by September 25, wherever possible.
- Plan cash requirements in advance and use ATMs/cash recyclers as necessary.
- Maximise digital channels, including internet banking, mobile banking, UPI, ATMs and other available digital banking facilities.
However, customers should not assume that every service will necessarily function identically across all banks during the strike. Branch-dependent activities are the most directly exposed to disruption, while digital and automated channels may continue subject to individual bank systems and operational availability.
Government, unions on opposite sides of the unresolved issue
The Finance Ministry has stressed that “the welfare and convenience of bank customers remains the Government’s foremost priority”, while appealing to the unions and bank managements to ensure continuity of essential services.
In its earlier appeal, the Ministry said: “Given that most concerns of the Unions have been substantially addressed, that the remaining demand continues to be examined, and that the Government continues to proactively introduce welfare measures for the banking workforce, bank employees are urged to refrain from resorting to strikes, work towards resolving issues through dialogue, and ensure that banking services remain uninterrupted.”
The union side, however, has maintained that there has been “no positive response” on five-day banking and that the strike would proceed unless there was concrete progress.
Thus, the immediate issue is not merely a labour-management dispute. It has a direct customer-service dimension involving millions of account holders, businesses, pensioners, traders and other users who depend on uninterrupted banking channels.
A disruption that all stakeholders want to contain
The September 27 Sunday opening represents an attempt to create a buffer between the weekend and the proposed strike. Banks have also been communicating with employees and customers on maintaining continuity of essential services.
For customers, the practical message is straightforward: finish urgent branch work early, keep adequate cash for genuine requirements, use digital channels wherever appropriate and avoid leaving time-sensitive transactions until September 28–30.
For bank employees and managements, the continuing challenge is to balance the unions’ workplace demands with the need to minimise disruption to customers and the wider economy.
And for the government, the next few days will test whether the remaining differences can be addressed through dialogue before the three-day action begins.
The immediate priority for every stakeholder, therefore, is continuity—of banking services for customers, dialogue for employees and operational stability for the financial system.
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