AIBEA warns of nationwide strike demanding immediate recruitment of bank staff

Representational file image.
| Photo Credit: G. Karthikeyan

The All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA) might go on a countrywide agitation, including strikes, demanding adequate staff in the public and private sector banks, where positions have been lying vacant for years.

In a statement AIBEA General Secretary C.H. Venkatachalam said that they have been demanding for adequate recruitment of staff in the banks to fill up all the vacancies as it affects effective and satisfactory service to customers.

“In the last few years, Banks are not recruiting adequate number of employees. Recruitment of staff has slowed down. Recruitment of subordinate employees has been stopped totally. There are more than one lakh vacant posts in the Banks which remain unfilled,” he said.

According to him, instead of filling up these vacancies, banks are trying to outsource these permanent jobs on temporary and contract basis, which AIBEA strongly opposes.

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Talking about the recovery of bad loans, he urged the Government to publish the list of loan defaulters and action should be taken to recover the loans.

Mr. Venkatachalam said that bad loans/Non performing Assets in the banks have increased over the years. Bulk of the defaulted loans are dues from the big private corporate companies and not from individuals.

“Instead of taking stern action on the defaulters to recover the loans, huge concession are being given to them. Huge amount of loans given to the corporate companies are being written off. Banks are incurring losses due to such loan write-off. This is not acceptable and we oppose the concession given to big loan defaulters,” he said.

He also questioned how only the Adani group of companies emerged as the successful bidder for an auction in which it got a haircut of 74% for a loan worth ₹61,832 crore. The total loan written off by banks from 2001-2023 is ₹14,56,805 crore.