United Forum of Bank Unions • Independent Research Dossier 2026

UFBU REPORT 2026

The definitive illustrated atlas of India’s apex bank-union forum — 7 constituents, 10 lakh+ members, 30+ years of bipartite negotiation.

👥 10 Lakh+ Members

🏦 7 Unions United

📅 Since 1997

🤝 Bipartite Negotiator

Part 01 — The Seven Pillars

Constituent Circles

Each circle has Ideology-coded border, with micro-affiliates list. Left = red, INTUC = green, Independent = blue, SBI legacy = navy.

AIBEA

Left • 1946

All India Central Bank Emp Fed All India PNB Employees Fed Bank of Baroda Employees Fed Bengal Provincial Bank Emp Assoc Maharashtra State Bank Emp Fed UCO Bank Employees Union Union Bank Employees Union

AIBOC

Independent • 1985

AISBOF – SBI BoB Officers Federation Canara Bank Officers Assoc (CBOA) PNB Officers Assoc Union Bank Officers Fed Bank of India Officers Assoc

NCBE

SBI Legacy • 1960s

SBI Staff Union Delhi Chandigarh Circle Hyderabad Circle Bhubaneswar Circle Kolkata • Chennai • Mumbai

AIBOA

Independent • 1982

Bank of India Officers Assoc Central Bank Officers Assoc Private Sector Officers Forum Kotak / HDFC / ICICI UCO Bank Officers Assoc

BEFI

Left • 1982

PNB Employees Fed PNBEFI Indian Bank Employees Fed UCO Bank Emp Assoc – BEFI United Bank of India Emp Union AIRRBEA – RRB Affiliates Kerala, WB, Assam, Tripura Units

INBEF

INTUC • 1958

PNB INTUC Federation Central Bank INTUC BoB INTUC Canara Bank INTUC Union Bank INTUC

INBOC

INTUC Officers

SBI Officers Congress BoB Officers Congress PNB Officers Congress IOB Officers Congress Central Bank Officers Congress

Membership Split • 2026 Estimate

10L+Total Members

AIBEA 40%

AIBOC 32%

BEFI 10%

NCBE 10%

Others 8%

Percentages indicative of wage-board filings & BPS submissions. Others = INBEF, INBOC, AIBOA combined.

Structure Deep Dive

Why UFBU matters in 2026

UFBU is the sole collective bargaining umbrella that negotiates bipartite settlements with IBA. Post 2026 restructuring, 9 → 7 unions for leaner negotiations, but federated affiliates now exceed 420+ regional units. Ideology mosaic (Left, INTUC, Independent, SBI legacy) is retained to prevent fragmentation.

BARGAINING POWER

12th BPS • 17% hike

13th BPS due 2027 • 5-day week pending

COVERAGE

21 Public + 12 Pvt + 43 RRBs

Largest bank employee forum in India

Table 01 — Constituents & Affiliates Registry

Complete Affiliate Mapping

Constituent	Key Affiliates (All)	Parent Membership	Bank Focus	GS Name	Status
AIBEA Left • Est.1946	• All India Central Bank Employees Federation (Central Bank) • All India PNB Employees Fed (PNB) • Bank of Baroda Employees Fed (BoB) • Bengal Provincial Bank Employees Association (WB) • Maharashtra State Bank Employees Federation • UCO Bank Employees Union (UCO Bank) • Union Bank Employees Union	~4,00,000 Largest clerical union	All PSBs + Pvt	C.H. Venkatachalam General Secretary	● Active
AIBOC Independent • 1985	• AISBOF – SBI • Bank of Baroda Officers Federation • Canara Bank Officers Association • PNB Officers Association • Union Bank Officers Federation • Bank of India Officers Association	~3,20,000 Officers confed	PSBs primarily	Rupam Roy Gen Secretary	● Active
NCBE SBI Circles • 1960s	• SBI Staff Union Delhi Circle • SBI Staff Union Chandigarh Circle • SBI Staff Union Hyderabad Circle • SBI Staff Union Bhubaneswar Circle • SBI Staff Union Kolkata Circle • SBI Staff Union Chennai Circle • SBI Staff Union Mumbai Circle	~1,00,000	SBI Associate	L. Chandrasekhar Gen Secretary	● Active
AIBOA Independent • 1982	• Bank of India Officers Assoc • Central Bank Officers Assoc • Private Sector Bank Officers Forum (Kotak, HDFC, ICICI) • UCO Bank Officers Assoc	~35,000	Mixed	Sanjay Khan Gen Secretary	● Active
BEFI Left • 1982	• PNB Employees Federation of India PNBEFI • Indian Bank Employees Federation • UCO Bank Emp Assoc – BEFI wing • United Bank of India Employees Union • RRB affiliates AIRRBEA • Kerala State Unit • West Bengal State Unit • Assam & Tripura State Units	~1,00,000	PSB + RRB	Debasish Basu Chowdhury Gen Secretary	● Active
INBEF INTUC • 1958	• PNB INTUC Federation • Central Bank INTUC • BoB INTUC • Canara Bank INTUC • Union Bank INTUC	~30,000	PSBs	O.P. Sharma Gen Secretary	● Active
INBOC INTUC Officers	• SBI Officers Congress • BoB Officers Congress • PNB Officers Congress • IOB Officers Congress • Central Bank Officers Congress	~25,000	Officers INTUC	Prem Kumar Makkar Gen Secretary	● Active

Table 02 — Leadership Roster 2026

Serving vs Retired Leadership

Green = Serving officer/employee, Red = Retired veteran holding union office. Reflects UFBU’s mixed leadership model.

Leader	Union	Bank	Status
C.H. Venkatachalam	AIBEA	Central Bank	● Retired
Rupam Roy	AIBOC	SBI (AISBOF)	● Serving
Sanjay Khan	AIBOA	Central Bank of India	● Serving
L. Chandrasekhar	NCBE	SBI	● Serving
Debasish Basu Chowdhury	BEFI	United Bank (now PNB)	● Retired
O P Sharma	INBEF	United Bank (now PNB)	● Retired
Prem Kumar Makkar	INBOC	United Bank (now PNB)	● Retired

Evolution — 80 Years of Unity

Timeline Illustration

1946

AIBEA Born — Calcutta

Prabhat Kar, first gen. Red flag unions in Bengal & Bombay. Foundation of organized bank employees movement.

1982

BEFI Formed

Split from AIBEA over ideology, CITU alignment. Strong in Eastern India, Kerala & RRBs.

1985

AIBOC Emerges

Officers’ confederation, SBI officers (AISBOF) + nationalized banks. First BPS for officers.

1997

UFBU Formed — 9 Unions

Historic unity: 9 unions under one banner to jointly negotiate with IBA. Tarun Mohan Committee.

2026

Restructured to 7

Lean UFBU: Merger/exit reduces to 7 core. Focus: 5-day banking, pension updation, 13th BPS.

🕰 80 Years Legacy ✊ 12 Bipartite Settlements Signed

Beyond UFBU — Alternatives Landscape

Other Voices & Rivalries in 2026

While UFBU remains dominant, parallel forums heavily challenge its historical hegemony.

⚡

The Great Divide: UFBU vs. NOBW & NOBO

The central conflict between UFBU and the BMS-affiliated unions (NOBW representing workmen and NOBO representing officers) stems from a deep ideological and tactical split over how collective bargaining should operate in Indian banks:

The Representation Monopoly: NOBW and NOBO consistently demand proportional representation at the central IBA negotiating table, challenging UFBU’s historical cartel.
The Strike Culture: Operating under a “nationalist labor” philosophy, BMS affiliates strongly oppose UFBU’s reliance on frequent, politically-motivated banking strikes. They often call for boycotts of UFBU strike actions to prioritize economic stability.
The “Levy” Dispute: NOBW and NOBO aggressively campaign against UFBU’s practice of deducting a mandatory “levy” (a percentage of arrears) from BPS wage settlements. They label this deduction as extortionate, while UFBU defends it as essential funding for years of legal and operational union efforts.

BMS — Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh

RSS-affiliated, not part of UFBU. Runs National Organization of Bank Workers (NOBW) & Officers (NOBO). Strong in SBI, growing in RRBs. Demands nationalist labour policy.

NOBW • NOBO~1.2L membersRight ideology

We Bankers — Independent Forum

Millennial-led, social-media driven, apolitical. Rejects traditional union levy model, crowdfunds via UPI. Popular among young POs, demands work-life balance.

~45k TwitterNo levy modelDigital first

Private Sector Forum

Unorganized officers from HDFC, ICICI, Axis, Kotak, IDFC. Not recognized by IBA. Linked to AIBOA’s Private Sector Bank Officers Forum. Demands inclusion in BPS.

HDFC • ICICI • KotakUnrecognized~25k est.

Sources & Methodology — UFBU Report 2026
Compiled from UFBU circulars (1997-2026), IBA BPS records, AIBEA/AIBOC/BEFI conference reports, NCBE circle filings, INTUC labour dept archives, and bank-wise HR filings. Membership splits are 2025-26 estimates extrapolated from levy collections, check-off data and BPS mandate votes; not audited. Affiliates list includes all active federations as of Jan 2026 restructuring (7 constituents). Logos, acronyms are trade property of respective unions. Editorial design: Navy #0f3d7a, Saffron #ff7a00, Light #eef4ff, white cards 20-22px radius, pure CSS donut via conic-gradient, no JS. Ready to paste into WordPress Custom HTML block — all styles inline inside <style> tag. No external dependencies.

Created for educational illustration • Not an official UFBU document • Verify with respective union circulars before citation.

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