Over the last three years, the number of employees in most public-sector banks (PSBs) has declined even as banks have continued to expand its branches, Business Standard reported.
According to a data compiled by the daily, PSBs including Bank of India, Canara Bank,Bank of Baroda and Uco Bank witnessed a drop in its employee size, whereas the State Bank of India and Punjab National Bank saw a slight increase in the headcount.
The number of employees for Bank of India fell from 52,374 in financial year (FY) 2023 to 50,944 in 2024, while it dipped to 50,564 in 2025, as per the report. Similarly, Canara Bank showed a downward trend in its employee count, falling from 84,978 in FY23 to 82,638 in FY24 and 81,260 in FY25, while Bank of Baroda also continued its reduction from 76,513 in FY23 to 74,227 in FY24 and further down to 73,742 in FY25. Uco Bank’s headcount dropped from 21,698 in FY23 to 21,456 in FY24 and further to 21,049 in FY25.
On the other hand, for SBI, which is the largest PSB in India, there was a slight recovery after falling from 235,858 in FY23 to 232,596 in FY24. In FY25, the headcount increased to 236,226, the report stated. Meanwhile, PNB also saw its employee count increase slightly from 102,319 in FY23 to 102,349 in FY24 before slightly falling to 102,316 in FY25.
The branch networks for all these PSBs increased in FY 2025.
Several bank unions have raised concerns over the decline of staff strength in recent years. Earlier this year, bank employees also staged protests in some cities. Being short-handed is impacting customer service and the well-being of the staff, they have complained.
“There are many branches where only two people are working. In extreme cases, we found one or two branches are running with only three employees. This needs to be addressed,” a senior bank official was quoted as saying to Business Standard.
Meanwhile, the finance ministry has reportedly asked the chief secretaries of states and union territories to employees to sensitise bank employees and maintain uninterrupted service for the public. This comes after news reports and social media posts of incidents of verbal abuse, physical assault and threats of violent actions against bank staff on bank premises.
Source – https://thewire.in/banking/public-sector-banks-are-seeing-a-steady-decline-in-staff-headcount-report