Vinod Chandrashekhar Dixit
Why delay in implementing a “5-day banking” system ? Bank employees have been pushing for a 5-day workweek for a long time. The Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and bank unions agreed to a 5-day workweek in December 2023. They finalized plans in the 9th Joint Note on March 8, 2024, which includes Saturdays and Sundays off. With no official deadline announced, the wait for government approval continues.
Recently Nilesh Pawar – Secretary of FBOIA has righty stated that “Bank employees are the backbone of the economy, yet they continue to face immense workload, unregulated working hours and mounting stress. Despite repeated assurances, the commitment to implement 5 days banking remains unfulfilled. A healthy work-life balance is not just an employee demand but a necessity for better productivity and efficient banking services.”
With banks and clients moving to digital banking, it is now feasible for the banking industry to adopt the 5 day week structure. Such a move has many benefits: better employee morale and enhanced productivity, saves on power, saves on travel and fuel, less traffic woes during weekends, good for environment etc. A 5-day work week provides several benefits, including improved work-life balance, increased employee morale and productivity, reduced stress, better personal planning due to predictable schedules, and a dedicated time for rest and relaxation with two consecutive days off, allowing employees to feel refreshed when returning to work on Monday.
Bankers deserve work life balance. Most of the bank officers are posted outside their home place throughout India and on most of the days’ work for more hours than for which they are paid. Because of this families of bank officers suffer a lot. It provides a consistent structure where employees work eight hours a day, typically from Monday to Friday. One of the advantages of the five-day workweek is its cost-effectiveness and simplicity. With increased digitization, Internet and mobile banking facilities, ATMs and e-galleries and availability of 24 x 7 services for customers, it is now possible for banking sector to follow a 5-day week schedule.
The bank employees carry a lot of workload because of competition. Two days they can rewind concentrate on family and give their best to the institution. In order to attract bright talented youngsters to banks in junior and middle level management and with the availability of most of the banking services to customers digitally 24×7, time has now come to introduce 5 days week in banking sector.
Bank employees are very busy throughout the day and they are unable to do anything for their families. They are always deprived from most of the holidays too. As compared to Central and state government employees, Bank employees officers have to take various risk in their everyday work. This will make banking an attractive carrier option among modern youths and enable bankers to live a healthy life and achieve work life balance. One must remember that a happy and healthy banker only can give good customer service and can properly discharge his duties to needy public.
