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5-day week for banks? Not anytime soon; Saturday is crucial day for customers

Reports say the primary concern is disruption in banking services; for many people, Saturdays are when they manage their banking errands.

Dhanam News Desk

The much-talked-about demand for a five-day work week in the banking sector might not materialise in the 2025–26 financial year.

Though bank unions have been pushing this for a while, signals from the Finance Ministry suggest it’s not happening just yet.

Why the hesitation?

Reports say the primary concern is disruption in banking services. For many people, Saturdays are when they manage their banking errands. Officials point out that a good chunk of customers still prefer walking into branches — especially on Saturdays — despite the rise in digital transactions.

The fear is that closing banks on Saturdays could cause delays and inconvenience. And at a time when banks are struggling to attract and retain deposits, the government reportedly feels that shutting down another day could make matters worse.

Branches still matter

While apps and online services have become popular, officials say that physical branches are still crucial for several reasons — from customer interactions to marketing efforts. Activities like door-to-door campaigns to bring in more business are easier when branches stay open over the weekend.

At the moment, banks are closed on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month. But since 2015, bank employee unions have been pushing to get all Saturdays and Sundays off.

Unions not giving up

In March, the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), an umbrella body of several banking staff organisations, wrote to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Their pitch? Make it five working days a week. According to the union, this won’t reduce total working hours or affect customer service. The idea is simply to squeeze the same number of hours into fewer days.

Interestingly, in December 2023, the UFBU and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) signed a memorandum to recommend making Saturdays official holidays under the Negotiable Instruments Act. That proposal is now awaiting the Reserve Bank of India’s approval.

Staff crunch adds to the story

The call for fewer working days comes at a time when the public sector banking workforce has shrunk noticeably. In 2013, there were 3.98 lakh clerks. By 2024, the number dropped to 2.46 lakh — that’s around 1.5 lakh fewer people.

Sub-staff positions also took a hit, falling from 1.53 lakh in 2013 to just over 94,000 by 2024. Altogether, public sector banks saw a net drop of nearly 1.4 lakh employees during this period.

Meanwhile, private sector banks have gone in the opposite direction. From 2.29 lakh employees in 2013, they expanded massively to 6.17 lakh by 2024.

Strikes, letters, and negotiations

Bank employees haven’t exactly stayed quiet about the issue. On March 24 and 25, the UFBU had planned a 48-hour strike demanding a five-day work week and better staffing. But the strike was called off after the Central Labour Commission apparently assured them that discussions on these matters were moving in the right direction.

Though talks are ongoing between the unions, IBA, and the government, officials say it’s unlikely that any decision will be rolled out in 2025–26.

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