Will banks be closed on 12 February? Unions call for strike, services may be affected

Bank strike: Bank of Baroda (BoB) has informed the stock exchanges that multiple bank unions have called for a strike on 12 February on various issues and demands and notified of potential disruption in services due to the same.

According to the filing, the All India Bank Employee’s Association (AIBEA), All India Bank Officers Association (AIBOA) and Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) have jointly called for a country-wide strike on Thursday, 12 February 2026.

Will banks across India be closed on 12 February?

At present, there is only a call for strike and neither any major bank nor the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has declared a holiday on 12 February. Till such time as an official declaration is made, banks are expected to function as normal on the date.

To this end, BoB said that it is “taking all the necessary steps for smooth functioning of Bank’s branches and offices on the day of strike”, adding that if the strike is finalised, “functioning of the branches and offices may be affected”.

Notably, regardless of the union strike, private sector lenders including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, IDFC First Bank and Axis Bank are expected to open as usual as these staff are not part of the involved unions.

Why are bank unions calling for strike on 12 February?

According to a News18 report, the strike called on 12 February, is opposed to the four new Labour Codes notified by the Centre in November. The new codes will replace 29 existing labour laws, which the unions describe as “increasing attacks on the working class.”

The report added that this demand has support from over 10 Central Trade Unions (CTUs) across the country.

The strike is also expected to continue a demand raised last month, when operations of public sector lenders, including the State Bank of India (SBI), and Punjab National Bank were disrupted, after the United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) observed a nationwide strike on 27 January.

Notably, this came after three national holidays on 24, 25 and 26 January for fourth Saturday, Sunday and Republic Day, respectively. The UFBU is an umbrella body of nine unions representing bank officers and employees.

The key demand from bank unions is that the government implement five-day work week for banks. At present, only second and fourth Saturdays are off. Notably, unions are demanding all Saturdays off — something reportedly agreed upon during the 12th Bipartite Settlement signed with the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) in March 2024 but is awaiting government notification.

(With inputs from Agencies)