PNB officers’ union flags large-scale transfers of Scale IV officers, seeks review

The Punjab National Bank (PNB) Officers’ union has written to the bank’s managing director to reconsider the mass-scale transfer of Scale IV officers and above, saying that such massive relocation would impact the performance of the country’s second-largest public-sector lender.

In a letter to the bank’s MD and CEO Ashok Chandra, the All India Punjab National Bank Officers’ Association said that 1,142 Scale IV officers, nearly one-fourth of its strength, have been given transfer orders, creating huge disruption.

The management has arbitrarily ordered the transfer of a huge number of chief manager-rank officers in clear disregard of set policy, it said, adding that the move is not a policy for growth but an act of ‘vengeance’.

“There are cases where certain officers have been applying for transfer repeatedly in the last 2 to 5 years for posting to other zones, but management did not approve such requests. Now, arbitrarily, these officers have been transferred to some other zones,” All India Punjab National Bank Officers’ Association general secretary Dilip Saha said.

Female officers are not spared; even when they were already working at a zone/circle outside the home circle, it said, adding that these officers could have been posted in different zones where their spouse and family reside, which would have served the same purpose of rotation.

There are even cases where officers having 3 months to 1 year until retirement are transferred to the farthest zones and even current-year transfer requests are ignored, it said.

In view of the above, it said, “We request that the current strict and vindictive approach may kindly be avoided and a balanced and humane policy may be followed by keeping the tenure longer in a circle or zone for at least 6 years.” The union also raised concerns about the performance evaluation system, saying it is faulty.

“This issue is not only about transfer policy but also about fairness, transparency and morale of officers. We are confident that under your leadership, a fair and balanced decision will be taken in the interest of the organisation and its officers and correct the present situation even if it takes a few more days,” it added.

Punjab National Bank (PNB) has about 1 lakh employees. Of this, about 4,000 would be Scale IV officers.