Finance Ministry approves five-day week for public sector banks, all Saturdays off

The Union Finance Ministry has given a major relief to officers and employees of public sector banks. Every Saturday will now be a weekly off in all public sector banks. The ministry has issued an official notification and directed that the decision be implemented with immediate effect.

This means banks will follow a five-day week, from Monday to Friday. Until now, only the second and fourth Saturdays of the month were holidays. That arrangement has been scrapped, and banks will remain closed on every Saturday from now on.

Bank employees' unions had been demanding for several years that a five-day week from Monday to Friday be introduced, with Saturday and Sunday as holidays. The demand had been raised continually. Bank employees are happy after the Centre's approval.

According to the Finance Ministry's official letter, the five-day week will come into force with immediate effect. The letter says the holiday given so far on the second and fourth Saturdays of the month is cancelled, and banks will now be closed on every Saturday. With the start of the five-day week, the daily working hours of bank employees are likely to be extended by a few minutes. It will also be ensured that the decision does not affect customers' work.

Direct banking operations will remain closed on Saturdays, but all digital services such as ATMs, net banking, UPI and mobile banking will run round the clock without interruption. Work that requires a visit to a bank branch will not be possible on Saturdays, but these digital services will remain available to customers.

Customers will now have to plan their work that requires a visit to the bank between Monday and Friday. For cheque clearance and essential account-related work, they will have to wait until Monday. Customers will therefore have to complete important bank work within these five days of the week.