5 Days working in Bank: Will banks remain open 5 days a week from December? This will be the new time of branch opening and closing

5 Days working in Bank: Will banks remain open 5 days a week from December? This will be the new time of branch opening and closing Tezzbuzz | 27/10/2024 13:24:27

5 Days Working in Bank: The government may approve the proposal to work five days a week for bank employees in India. The Finance Ministry can approve the proposal to keep bank branches closed for two days till December 2024. If this scheme is implemented then banks will remain closed on all Saturdays and Sundays. At present banks are closed only on all Sundays and second and fourth Saturdays. This can prove to be a big milestone in the banking system. This step will be an important step towards creating a better work-life balance for banking professionals. A consensus has been reached between the Indian Banks Association (IBA) and employee unions on this issue. Bank employees have been demanding to work for 5 days for a long time.

This will be the new timing of opening and closing of banks

If the government approves this scheme, bank employees will get Saturday and Sunday off. This will increase daily working hours by 40 minutes. In most areas, banks remain open from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, but these timings may soon change to 9 am to 5:40 pm. However, some branches still maintain public timings of 10 am to 4 pm.

Banks will remain open 40 extra minutes from Monday to Friday

An agreement has been reached between the Indian Banks Association (IBA) and employee unions. Bank employee unions have said this will not reduce customer service hours. For this, there is also a proposal to increase the working hours by 40 minutes. An MoU for public and private sector banks was signed between IBA and bank unions in December 2023. After this, on March 8, 2024, IBA and All India Bank Officers Confederation issued a joint note informing about working 5 days a week and giving holidays on weekends.

When will the government give two days holiday to banks?

In September 2024, the All India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC), in a post on Twitter, had appealed to the Finance Ministry and the Prime Minister's Office to quickly approve the proposal. AIBOC said that this is necessary for the welfare of bank employees and to increase the efficiency of the banking sector. According to reports, bank employee unions are hopeful that the government will issue the notification by the end of this year or early 2025.

The government last gave a holiday on 2 Saturdays in 2015.

Once approved, Saturday will be recognized as an official holiday under Section 25 of the Indian Union Act. At present, banks are closed only on second and fourth Saturdays. Bank unions have been demanding holiday on all Saturdays and Sundays since 2015. Under the 10th bilateral agreement in 2015, the RBI and the government had agreed with the IBA and declared the second and fourth Saturdays as holidays.

Bank employees will get benefits

After the new list comes, customers will have to verify the operating hours of the local branches. The final decision of the Central Government may help in maintaining the work-life balance of bank employees across India. A senior bank official said that the 5-day work week will be very beneficial for bank employees, it will help them recharge and increase their productivity. Banking professionals have been eagerly waiting for the government approval for a long time. It is expected that the government will take a decision by December 2024.