Banking services in the tri-city along with Punjab and Haryana was severely affected as public sector banks remained closed as bank employees went on two-day long nationwide strike to press for various demands, including wage revision.
Agitating bank employees under the banner of United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) carried out protest rallies and held demonstrations at several places including ludhiana, Chandigarh, Sangrur, Amritsar, Patiala, Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar, Kaithal. Due to the strike, cheques remained uncleared while transactions like cash withdrawal, cash and cheque deposits could not be carried out.
However, financial transactions at private banks like HDFC, ICICI remained unaffected. Industrial segment in Punjab and Haryana bore the brunt of the strike as industry representatives complained that their business transactions were adversely affected. Addressing the gathering here, bank employees chastised apathetic attitude of IBA for meagre increase in the wages of employees.
Punjab Bank Employees’ Federation Secretary Naresh Gaur said, “We have been forced to take this extreme step because of bank management’s apathetic attitude towards employees’ demands. We have been left with no option except to observe strike,” he said. More than 2,000 employees participated in rally here in Chandigarh under the banner of United Forum of Bank Unions. On the occasion, protesters criticised the attitude of the IBA/Government for their lacklustre attitude towards the genuine demands of the employee’s as wage revision which is over due by one year.