The United Forum of Reserve Bank (RBI) Officers and Employees has threatened to go on mass casual leave on November 30, to protest against the delay in wage revision.
The forum has also written a letter to Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das requesting his intervention in the matter.
“We have no alternative but to protest very strongly against the bank’s inexplicable dilly-dallying on a highly sensitive matter like wage revision of the staff pending for the past four years and more,” the forum said in a statement.
It said all staff coming under the current wage settlements will go on mass casual leave on November 30.
The forum comprises four unions – All India Reserve Bank Employees Association (AIRBEA), All India Reserve Bank Workers Federation (AIRBWF), Reserve Bank of India Officers’ Association (RBIOA), and All India Reserve Bank Officers’ Association (AIRBOA).
In the letter to the governor, the forum highlighted that the wage negotiations of the bank and recognised associations/ federation representing all sections of the bank’s staff commenced around mid-July 2021, but the progress has been slow.
“The process of negotiations, however, came to an abrupt halt for unexplained reasons on September 27, 2021, when representatives of AIRBEA who were camping in Mumbai were asked to return and representatives of AIRBWF who were on way to Mumbai at the bank’s call were advised to terminate their journey,” the forum stated in the letter to the governor.
Officers’ association, RBIOA and AIRBOA were not called further, the letter read.
“More than one month and a half has passed since then. The staff of the bank is waiting agonisingly and anxiously. Four long years have passed since the settlement is due from November 2017,” the letter said.
The process of negotiations for all cadres of staff in the bank could have been finalised a month or so back, it said.
“We, as their accredited representatives, are therefore, constrained to call upon our members to mobilise themselves and express their grievances appropriately, in organised and disciplined manner, including cessation of work through mass casual leave, which we sincerely tried to avoid but an inordinate delay on the bank’s part on such a sensitive matter compels us,” the letter said.
