20000331

Govt asked

to clarify position

on retrenchment

RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Habib Bank Workers Front of Pakistan (HBWFP) has demanded of the government to clarify its position on the reports of likely retrenchment of more than 11,000 employees from the three nationalised banks.

In a joint statement on Thursday, the central president of the HBWFP, Habib Uddin Junaidi; president of the United Bank Employees Federation Pakistan, Maqsood Ahmed Farooqui; secretary general of the National Bank of Pakistan Trade Unions Federation, Mirza Rafiq Beg; secretary general of the State Bank of Pakistan Democratic Workers Union, Liaquat Ali Sahi; central leader of the Muslim Commercial Bank Staff Union Pakistan, Saeed Ghani; and secretary general of the Allied Bank of Pakistan Workers Federation, Shahid Hussain Naqvi; said the retrenchment would add to the confusion and chaos in the banking sector of the country.

They said the socio-economic structure was already suffering from a number of inadequacies and the retrenchment of 11,000 workers, in addition to 40,000 already sent home earlier in the Nawaz Sharif era, would be fatal for the entire banking sector.

Besides creating financial problems for the families of these 11,000 employees, the action would adversely affect the confidence of the customers.

The trade union leaders said: "The responsibility of malfunctioning of an organisation cannot be imposed on the lower staff. The employees of these three banks have greatly contributed their share of hard work and earned profit. It is because of their efforts that these banks are now on the path of progress. In view of their performance, the employees of these banks deserve better treatment and not the threat of retrenchment."

They blamed the high-ups of these banks for lapses if there were any.