IBA signs pact with unions: Banks see Rs 4,725 cr outgo as staff get 15% wage hike

Mumbai - Around one million employees of 43 banks, including state-owned ones, will get a 15 percent hike in salaries as the IBA today signed a wage agreement with unions and officers’ associations that will impose an additional burden of up to Rs 8,370 crore on lenders. The revision, applicable with effect from 1 November 2012, will benefit employees and officers in public sector banks, old private sector banks and a few foreign banks. The 15 percent hike would put an extra burden of Rs 4,725 crore on banks, Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) Chairman T M Bhasin told reporters. “The 15 percent wage revision would cost banks Rs 4,725 crore as incremental salary and allowances in a year. If superannuation cost is included, then the total burden would be around Rs 8,370 crore,” Bhasin said. [caption id=“attachment_2262702” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] As a prudent measure, banks have been making provisions for wage hike for the past few years. For officers, the pay has been revised from existing range of Rs 14,500-Rs 52,000 to Rs 23,700-Rs 85,000. A special allowance for officers ranging from 7.75-11 per cent of basic pay along with applicable dearness allowance has been introduced. The scale of pay of workmen and non-subordinate staff has been revised from Rs 7,200-Rs 19,300 to Rs 11,765-Rs 31,540 while the scale of pay of subordinate staff from Rs 5,850-Rs 11,350 to Rs 9,560-Rs 18,545. As per the new pact, a special allowance for workmen at 7.75 percent of basic pay along with applicable dearness allowance has also been introduced. Bhasin said arrears to the workmen will be given immediately and for officers’ within 4-6 months. The bank employees will soon get holidays on the second and fourth Saturdays. “RBI has given in-principle approval for it (holidays) and we have written to the government. We hope to get permission soon. We expect it should take 3-4 weeks time to implement it,” Bhasin added. The wage settlement has also introduced a medical insurance scheme for employees of member banks and their family members. “Earlier, all banks were having reimbursement of hospitalisation and medical expenses on individual bank basis. Now, we have taken consolidated policy from four public sector non-life companies which gives a floater cover of Rs 3 lakh and Rs 4 lakh for family. “There will be cashless facility available as we are giving them 100 per cent reimbursement for self and dependents,” Bhasin said. In the wage revision exercise, 11 employees unions and officers associations participated. PTI