PSU Bank Staff Among Lowest Paid in State

PSU Bank Staff Among Lowest Paid in State

KOCHI: It may be hard to believe, but a daily wage labourer earns more than a PSU bank clerk earns in Kerala.  In fact, the starting salary of PSU bank employees is lower than even a primary school teacher, going by a presentation made by the All-India Bank Officers Confederation (AIBOC), at the wage negotiations. As per the AIBOC comparison, a bank clerk gets a starting salary of Rs 15,000 per month, which is much lower than the salaries of the other similar white-collar employees, including Central Government officers, college lecturers and even primary school teachers.  A primary school teacher earns Rs 31,000 per month, same as what a bank officer earns. A Central Government employee enjoys a starting salary of Rs 52,000 per month. But, the top earner is the college lecturer, at Rs 56,000 per month.

AIBOC also noted that a daily wage labourer gets Rs 750, which is higher than the Rs 500/day a PSU bank clerk gets.  Pressing home their demand for wage hike, the unions pointed out that the operating profit of PSU banks for the fiscal 2013-14 stood at Rs 1,27,000 crore. If the wage hike demand is met, the total outgo would only be about Rs 6,000 crore for 10 lakh PSU bank employees.  But, when it comes to writing off loans, especially corporate loans, the banks are quite liberal. According to the AIBOC, the PSU banks have written off Rs 34,409 crore worth loans in 2013-14.  Following talks with the Indian Banks Association, which upped the hike offer by 1.5 per cent to 12.5 per cent, the bank unions have deferred the one-day nationwide  strike planned for Wednesday. The talks are expected to continue on Wednesday.  The bank unions are also planning a complete shutdown of the banking industry from January 21 to 24. The unions have threatened to go on an indefinite strike from March 16, if demands are not met.

Source:
http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/