Officers and employees of the Reserve Bank of India are on an agitational path from today (Tuesday) after their ‘several attempts’ to revive talks on long-pending issue of wage settlement have failed repeatedly.

“We have no option but to protest the inexplicable dilly-dallying on a highly sensitive matter such as wage revision pending for last four years and more,” said Samir Ghosh, Arun Samaddar, Gavin Coelho, and Jeet Pathak, who represent employees, workers and officers’ unions under the United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees.

‘Wait in vain’

The United Forum told the constituents in a circular that “we felt very strongly to embark on protest earlier, but in deference to the wishes of some well-meaning friends, collectively decided to hold on till this week. The Governor was reportedly scheduled to hold talks with the Human Resources Management Department and we were expecting a solution to emerge.”

“Our wait is in vain, unfortunately,” the circular said. Having exhausted all avenues of peaceful solution, it has been decided that delegations of joint office-bearers/executive committee meet with Regional Directors of the RBI during lunch recess today (Tuesday) demanding immediate resumption of the process of finalisation of wage talks.

Mass leave

Lunch-time gate demonstrations will be launched on Thursday and officers and employees will wear a badge during November 23 to 26. Lunch-time mass deputations will be taken out to the offices of the Regional Directors/Officers-in-charge on November 26.

All staff coming under the current wage settlement will go on mass casual leave on November 30, the circular said.

A senior retired RBI official said that although employees and staff have the goodwill of the RBI’s name, they have had to struggle at different times for either fair and respectable salary revisions or other service conditions.

Pensioners suffer worst

“Since September 2008, these struggles have been more marked, frequent and regrettable, as the independence of the Bank even in staff matters had been surrendered to outside authority,” he said on condition of anonymity.

It is an ironic coincidence that on a day the Prime Minister dedicated some of the functions of the RBI to the nation, the staff has had to announce an agitational programme for getting a fair and honourable wage settlement.

Pensioners and family pensioners have been worse sufferers since counterparts in the government institutions have benefited far more, the retired official said.

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