Chennai, Tamil Nadu: Around 400,000 bank employees throughout the country are set to strike on September 26-27 to protest against the merger of public sector banks.
Speaking to ANI, secretary of All India Bank Officers' Confederation's (AIBOC) state unit R Sekaran, said: "From September 26 to 27, four organisations representing four lakh [400,000] officers throughout the country will go on strike. We are opposing the merger of public sector banks as it is against the general public." Accusing the Central government of taking unilateral action, Sekaran said the Central government has not consulted the banking personnel and the general public before making the decisions.
Some other demands of the bankers include pending wage revision, reduction in service charges levied by banks on customers and ensuring adequate staffing.
"Four lakh [400,000] banking personnel will participate in the strike and Rs48,000 crore [Rs480 billion] worth of transactions will be affected in a day," said Sekaran.
Upon being asked about the inconvenience caused to the customers, the official asserted that the organisation is protesting for the interest of the general public.
"We are fighting for the people. Going on strike is our last resort. We made several agitations but to no avail. Public sector banks should continue to exist," said Sekaran.
