PM Modi holds emergency talks ahead of nationwide strike by trade union, bank staff on Sept 2

Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Government is trying to reach out to trade union and bank employees, who have threatened to go on a nationwide strike on September 2 (Friday).

In the wake of the strike, PM Modi held an emergency meeting on Monday evening with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal and Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya.

Sources who attended the meeting said that the government will reach out to unions within 48 hours with an offer that could help avert the strike.

Banks, government offices and factories will be closed on Friday across the country, the unions have warned.

The central unions and the bank employee unions have been pushing for 12 major demands since September last year, including raising the minimum wage from Rs 9,000 to Rs 18,000 per month.

A pay hike for bank employees is pending since November 2012.

The unions are also opposed to the recent easing of rules by the government, for foreign investment, particularly in sectors like pharmaceutical and defence.

As many as 10 central trade unions have called for a one-day, pan-India strike on September 2.

Nearly five lakh bank union workers and officers are also set to join the strike called by trade unions.

Last year too, the unions had gone on a strike on September 2 to oppose the amendments in labour laws by the Centre as well as the states, saying that their 12-point charter of demands had not been met.