Punjab & Sind Bank Employees Issues still Unresolved, Strike may be recalled

The issues between the management of Punjab & Sind Bank and Bank Union, have not been resolved yet. Several meetings have been held between management and union at the Office of Chief Labour Commissioner but still the issues have not been resolved. The last conciliation meeting was held on 28.05.2025 and bank management had agreed to resolve the issues amicably. But still no positive response has been received.

On 26 June 2025, another round of talks were held between bank management and bank union. In this meeting, Bank union said that despite persistent efforts by union representatives, core grievances related to the transfer policy are still unresolved. The HRD Department’s actions have led to undue hardship for a significant number of officials, causing considerable distress within the workforce.

UFPSBU had put forward some basic demands such as:

• Transfer of employees who have not completed three years may be stopped and they may be reverted to their original post held by them.
• Disclosure of evaluation marks for al participants in the 2025-26 promotion process.
• A joint meeting should be arranged with the senior officers who can take decision in the matter.
• Management should positively consider the grievances of the victimised officials whose cases not reviewed by the management.
• The union has called for the immediate and direct involvement of the Executive Director (ED), Managing Director (MD), and CEO of the Bank to ensure a speedy resolution.

The Bank management said that:

• As advised earlier by the Deputy CLC(C), a joint meeting was held on 4th June 2025.
• The management has taken action on all grievances that were submitted on the grievance portal.
• For unresolved complaints, employees were allowed to submit appeals, and those appeals have been reviewed based on the bank’s policies.
• The management also said that each appeal was considered individually based on its merits.
• Regarding the union’s demand for a new transfer policy, the management said this matter would be discussed later.

After listening to both sides, the Deputy CLC(C) has given the following directions:

• The management should submit a detailed point-by-point reply to the union’s strike notice dated 2nd May 2025.
• The union should give the management a list of specific grievances, especially those related to unfair treatment in transfers.
• The management should then review these specific grievances fairly and on merit.

Furthermore, the union expressed concern that the management is using technology as a tool to silence the voice of dissent and victimize innocent staff members, including top office bearers, under the guise of automating the transfer process. The Federation highlighted that the disputed transfer policy has not been implemented with fairness or transparency.

It was specifically noted that while some employees—such as those from Guwahati—were transferred to distant locations like Mumbai, causing them maximum displacement, others were given undue advantage by being rotated within a radius of only 20 km. This selective implementation has created a situation where some favored employees benefit while others suffer significant losses.

The next conciliation meeting is scheduled for August 12, 2025. The union has announced that the strike has been postponed on request of Chief Labour Commissioner but the strike has not been cancelled.