BCRC seeks RBI nod for five-day week, looks to attract skilled workforce

The representative body for business correspondents has said the current 7-day work week will be unsustainable in the long run, and will result in a more errors of omission

The Business Correspondent Resource Council (BCRC) has sought the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) approval to implement a five-day week. 

Making its case for a transition to a five-day week, BCRC said that since the inception of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJRDY) and related financial inclusion programmes, the business correspondent (BC) business has been operating seven days a week to meet the government’s vision of expanding banking services to underserved areas. 

According to the just-released Report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India (FY24), in a decade of its existence, the number of beneficiaries under PMJDY has reached 54.2 crore, with deposits of Rs 2.4 trillion as of December 11, 2024, with 66.6 per cent of the beneficiaries being in rural and semi-urban areas. 

“While our dedication remains unwavering, this continuous seven-day schedule is proving unsustainable in the long run”, the BCRC said in its submission to the central bank. 

It also pointed out that a five-day week would enhance productivity by allowing employees time to recharge, leading to better performance and reduced errors in daily operations. A well-rested workforce is more vigilant and less prone to errors of omission, the Council has said, thus reducing the chances of operational lapses and fraud. A related factor is that as the BC industry increasingly adopts information technology and data-driven solutions, attracting skilled professionals is becoming critical. 

The demand for a five-day week by BC reflects that of the banking sector which now follows this schedule every alternate week. 

The latest move by the BCRC follows a demand that BCs also be allowed to sell insurance, as a result of which it has also written to the Ministry of Finance for an upward revision in the commission paid to agents. It has also sought the setting up of an annual pricing review committee and a relook at the penalties imposed by banks on BCs. BCRC is batting for a 30 basis point hike in the commission paid by banks for cash withdrawals, cash deposits, money transfers, Aadhaar-enabled Payment System transactions, and other banking and financial businesses.

                                                                                         

What's behind the 5-day week demand  It will enhance productivity by allowing employees time to recharge, leading to better performance and reduced errors.  A well-rested workforce will be more vigilant and less prone to errors of omission, reducing chances of operational lapses and fraud.  BC industry is adopting IT and data-driven solutions, attracting skilled professionals is critical