Joint Circular By Pensioners Body

Dated: 28.10.2018
Com.  Sanjeev K Bandlish
Convener, UFBU
Chandigarh 160017

Dear Com. Bandlish,

Pending Issues of Bank Retirees
The leadership of CBPRO & AIBRF met at Delhi on 24th October, 2018 to discuss and decide about the long pending issues of Bank Retirees and series of steps to resolve the issues at the earliest.

We have been requesting the UFBU leadership to have a detailed discussion with us about our issues and set a time frame in resolving those issues. The core issues of the Retirees as you already know are as under:

1. Improvement in   Family Pension in line with Government Pensioners and RBI Pensioners.
2. Updation of Pension
3. 100% DA Neutralization to Pre -November 2002 Retirees
4. Full Reimbursement of Medical Insurance premium of Retirees.
5. Reckoning Special Allowance component for Superannuation benefits retrospectively from 10th BPS.
6. Second Option of Pension for Resignees who had Pensionable Service
7. Dialogue with the Retirees Coordinated body in respect of Retirees Issues.

Quite a few of the above issues prominently find place in the Record Note of the 10th BPS signed in 2015. The IBA also expressed its keenness to resolve the issues, however expressing certain constraints and assured of looking at the issues with concern and sympathy after working out the so called cost implications. In fact every issue that mentioned in the Record Note should have been resolved by this time as Pension Regulation had clearly spelt out the statutory entitlement of Retirees in respect of Pension Updation.

So far as 100% DA Neutralization is concerned it is a question of  principle of equity and constitutional propriety where Pensioners  belong to a Homogeneous group and hence cannot be and should not be discriminated. Moreover 8th BPS had not made any exemption of the benefit of 100%DA to Pre- 2oo2 Retirees. The IBA only cited that the issue of DA was a matter "subjudice". Now since it is no longer a matter “subjudice", the justified grievance of the Pre-2002 Retirees should be redressed without any excuses.

In the same way IBA was showing compassion in respect of our demand for improvement in the Family Pension in line with the Government Retirees and RBI Retirees. The bogey of financial burden should not be an issue of concern as the Pension Fund is strong and robust, each year growing with fewer outflows and more accretion. Moreover Pension is a Deferred Wage and a statutory obligation under the Defined Benefit Scheme and not given out of profits but charged to the P & L accounts of the Bank's before arriving at the Net Profit.

The last Bipartite Settlement also resulted in an anomaly in respect of Special allowance component as well as thrusting the premium of Medical insurance on the Retirees. The Government communication of 2012 in respect of Medical Insurance never directed the IBA to bring out a discriminatory Medical Scheme disadvantaging the Retirees.

You will agree with us that the Bank Retirees are put to great disadvantage and humiliation for no fault of theirs. Rather their contribution to the Banking Industry was enormous and whatever their entitlements should has been given graciously and respectfully acknowledging their past services. It is amusing and baffling that the past and the present management committees of IBA who were/are MDs, DMDs or EDs of different Banks reaping & enjoying the benefit of full reimbursement of medical expenses should deny the same to their juniors and subordinates. From the Retired Secretary of Government of India to the lowest rank Retired employee of the Government of India, all enjoy the benefit of full reimbursement of Medical treatment where as in the Bank the top chosen few enjoy the benefit. This position cannot go unquestioned as it’s a question of Principle and not a question of monetary consideration. We cannot accept the argument of IBA or Government or anybody that for Retired Government employees the funds flow out of Consolidated Fund of India where as for the Banks it flows from Profits. The fact is that the Consolidated Fund of India is part of the Union Budget which is showing perennially and constantly showing deficit. It is also a fact that Banks are forced to show losses due to reckless lending by the top management through Board sanctions. These losses have occurred recently only and it is a temporary phenomenon. Moreover even at the cost of repetition we wish to state that any outgo in respect of improvement in respect of the issues that we have raised is to be paid out of the Pension Fund only which is strong and sufficient           (Rs Three Lakhs crores plus including SBI) and in no way the improvements in Pension payments would affect the Balance Sheets of the Banks and no less than the highest
Body of judiciary the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India had held that the Pension is a Deferred Wage for the past services rendered and it is not a bounty or charity. It is also a fact that the Pension corpus is meant for those who are recruited before April, 2010 only and they come under the Defined Benefit Pension Scheme. Again it is also a well known fact that some of the Banks had unauthorizedly transferred funds from their respective Pension Funds to their P&L accounts to boost the profit which also amounts to breach of trust and hence an actionable offence.
 
As your elders it is our natural expectation that you will highlight these issues when you talk to the IBA and we expect a decisive effort from UFBU in raising our issues and pursue the same with all seriousness which it fully deserves. We earnestly desire and wish that UFBU will engage with us in full scale deliberations about the Bank Retirees issues and will ensure issues containing in the Record Note of the last settlement are taken up aggressively and decisively and full justice is done to your elderly comrades who are in their late evening of life. Your crusade will make you feel abundantly vindicated that you are upholding the cause of your elders.

In pursuance of our long pending issues we have also decided in our meeting of 24th October, 2018 that we shall again plunge into Dharnas & Demonstrations at various centers urging the IBA and the Government to stop discrimination against Bank Employees and Officers and against Bank Retirees and request UFBU leadership to extend full support to all our action programmes.

We also request you to organise Agitational Programs including strike exclusively on Bank Retirees issues.

We also wish and hope that there will be regular meetings between UFBU and the Coordinate body of Retirees as frequently as possible which will facilitate sharing of informations and working out strategies to realise our demands. This will remove the discomfort and discomfiture to both of us as the issues of Bank Retirees are as dear to serving employees and officers as they are to the Bank Retirees.
 
We wish to march together with you hand in hand in our endeavor to get justice to all of us.

With Regards,

Yours Comradely,
                 
(A.Ramesh Babu)           (K.V. Acharya)                     (S.C. Jain)
         Joint Conveners, CBPRO                       General Secretary, AIBRF