JOINT LETTER ON WAGE NEGOTIATION

AIBOC and NOBO initiative

Dear Comrade,

JOINT LETTER ON WAGE NEGOTIATION : NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE MEETING WITH UNIONS / ASSOCIATIONS

We reproduce hereunder the joint letter no. 2019/IBA/01 dated 30th January, 2019 submitted by AIBOC and NOBO to the Chairman, IBA on the captioned subject for your information.

With greetings,

(Soumya Datta)
General Secretary

Text of Joint Letter No. 2019/IBA/01 dated 30.01.2019

ALL INDIA BANK OFFICERS’ CONFEDERATION (AIBOC)
NATIONAL ORGANISATION OF BANK OFFICERS (NOBO)

Ref No. 2019/IBA/01                                               Camp: Mumbai
           Date: 30.01.2019

The Chairman
Indian Banks’ Association
World Trade Centre Complex
6th Floor, Centre 1 Building
Cuff Parade
Mumbai – 400 005

Sir,

Wage Negotiation: Negotiating Committee Meeting with Unions / Associations

This has reference to your letter no. HR & IR / UFBU / XIBPS / 6688 dated 22nd January, 2019 addressed to Shri Sanjeev K. Bandlish, Convenor, United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU), informing that the next meeting of the Negotiating Committee of Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) with the representatives of constituent Unions / Associations is scheduled on 2nd February, 2019 at Mumbai. 
In this context, we would like to inform you that we, the following two Officers Associations, namely, All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC) and National Organisation of Bank Officers (NOBO) have taken decision not to take part in the Wage Revision talks proposed to be held by you with the Officers’ organisations, unless ‘unconditional (i.e. full) mandate’ is given by all the 19 Public Sector Banks for Wage Negotiation for all Officers from Scale I to Scale VII.

It may please be recalled that the joint Charter of Demands (COD) of the four officers’ organisations submitted to you on 5th June, 2017, it was clearly spelt out that negotiations should be for all officers upto Scale VII. Therefore, it is imperative that IBA should have ‘unconditional (i.e. full) mandate’ from all its Member Banks. It may be recalled that in the past, ‘Joint Notes’ covering wage

revision for all scales of officer employees had been signed by the IBA with the officers’ organisations on as many as 8 successive occasions, i.e. in 1979, 1984, 1989, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010 and 2015 and there is no reason that there should be any deviation from the same in the process of 11th BPS.

It is observed with concern that 5 out of 19 PSBs have given ‘fractured mandate’ for Wage Revision upto Scale III grade only and no fruitful effort is perceptible on your part to ensure that the remaining five Member Banks also submit their ‘unconditional (i.e. full) mandate’. Instead, you are proceeding with the Wage Negotiation process only upto Scale III, notwithstanding the fact that majority PSBs (14 out of 19) have already conveyed their full mandate for Wage Revisions for all Scales of Officers.

This is totally in contravention of tested practice hitherto followed in the Industry and also not in tune with the recommendations of the Pillai Committee Report. With the gradual erosion in minimum Basic Pay of Bank Officers in comparison to Central Government Officers and relative decrease in the rate of increase of salary of the officer employees in comparison to the subordinate staff and clerical staff over the last two decades, this time the officers community in the banking sector is legitimately in the hope of a just Wage Revision based on the concept of parity of pay of the Bank Officers with that of Officers of other sectors – more particularly the Central Government Officers. We also expect the Wage Negotiation talks to be based on the Charter of Demands, which is based on the principle of ‘Minimum Wages’. As such, your regressive approach has not only disappointed the rank and file of the Bank Officers / Executives, but also left them in a state of extreme de-motivation, distress and anguish. It has also triggered off serious industrial unrest in the Industry for which the IBA is squarely responsible.

You are also aware that since officers are promoted from one scale to another in the Banking Industry and accordingly fitment formulae is derived; if all the scales and increments are not decided simultaneously, fitment formulae cannot be worked out and anomaly will be created. Hence, your decision of holding wage talks only upto Scale III is illogical and irrational.

Under the above circumstances, besides expressing our inability to attend any Wage Negotiation talks for only upto Officers in Scale III, we request you not to convene any such talks without resolving the issue of Fractured Mandate. 


Yours sincerely,

             Sd/-                                              Sd/-
          (Soumya Datta)         (Viraj Tikekar)
     General Secretary           General Secretary
                       AIBOC                           NOBO