SBI officers resent modifications in VRS, form association

By Our Staff Reporter

HYDERABAD, FEB. 17. Officers of State Bank of India, Hyderabad Circle, who are unhappy with the modifications to the Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) have decided to form the SBIVRS Optee Officers Association and plan to take up a `Joint Action' programme if the management does not reverse the changes made to the scheme.

The SBI had offered VRS scheme to all permanent employees who have put in 15 years of service or completed 40 years of age as on December 31, 2000. The scheme was open from January 15 to 30 and employees had the option to withdraw their VRS applications till February 15.

In the meantime, the SBI management, however, issued a communication modifying the VRS scheme which limits the acceptance of VRS to only those officers who completed 55 years of age and that only 10 per cent of staff would be permitted to retire.

Giving details at a press conference here on Saturday, Mr. Y.L. Marianna, convener, Mr. U. Atreya Sarma, coordinator and Mr. K.L.S. Raj, co-convener of the newly-formed association, said of the 2.33 lakh SBI employees at the All-India level 33,000 responded to the VRS, constituting 14 per cent of employees.

Of the 33,000, they said 17,000 were officers while 16,000 were award staff. Accepting all VRS applications from the 16,000 award staff, while putting conditions on the officers, they felt was meting out `injustice' to officers opting for VRS. Against the 17,000 officers who opted for VRS, only 6,000 to 7,000 would be accepted, according to the new criteria, they said.

They said the bank's guidelines rendering `specialist officers' and `highly skilled and qualified staff' ineligible for VRS was also arbitrary, as the bank had never financed such officers studies or offered them additional incentives for such qualifications.

They pointed out that in other public sector banks, the response to the VRS varied from 15 per cent (Punjab National Bank) to 22 per cent in the case of Syndicate Bank. They said these banks accepted the applications from all their employees, including all officers who opted for the scheme, excepting those from ineligible categories.

If the SBI wanted to restrict retirement to 10 per cent of staff then it should have closed the scheme as and when 10 per cent applications were received, as has been done by banks like the Indian Overseas Bank, they said.

Representations have been sent to the Union Finance Minister and the SBI Management and if positive response is not received they would have to chalk out a joint action programme, they said without giving further details. However `Going to court is not ruled out', they said.

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