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Mounting Performance Pressure via WhatsApp Lead SBI Officials to Distress
SBI officials grapple with the adverse effects of using WhatsApp for official communication, citing distress and work-life balance issues. Violations of bank rules and midnight work updates exacerbate their concerns.
Author: Saurav Kumar
Published: November 2, 2023
Officials at the State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest public sector bank, are grappling with the unintended consequences of using WhatsApp for official communication, causing mounting distress and disturbing work-life balance.
An official at an SBI branch in Northeast India took a drastic step, exiting all the bank's WhatsApp groups to protest against its use for official correspondence. Their grievances centered around two key issues: the violation of the bank's own rules against using WhatsApp for official communication and the detrimental impact on employees' work-life balance.
Pic: SBI Employee Exits WhatsApp
Pic Credit: X
The message of the official refers to a circular issued in June 2019 of the SBI.
Another official of the SBI posted in the same region on the condition of anonymity told Kanal, “We have designated working hours in the bank but WhatsApp has become a tool of encroaching personal space. Official updates on performance, appraisal and targets are sent via WhatsApp during odd hours after office. It is harming bankers at an unthinkable pace.”
Performance Updates via WhatsApp
A screenshot of an SBI Branch Manager group shows a long message that said - “most of you have delivered below average performance numbers in almost all areas of business.”
The message from a Regional Manager delivered at 9.48 PM says alot about the unending lingering pressure on bankers of the nation's largest public sector bank.
Pic: WhatsApp Message at Night in SBI Group
The message from a Regional Manager delivered at 9.48 PM says alot about the unending lingering pressure on bankers of the nation's largest public sector bank.
While SBI officials have designated working hours, WhatsApp has blurred the boundaries, with official updates on performance, appraisals, and targets inundating employees' devices well past office hours. Some officials reported receiving performance updates as late as 9 PM, highlighting the intrusion of a toxic work culture.
WhatsApp Against Official Norms
Using WhatsApp is not allowed for official communication as per the rules of the SBI.
As per Circular No. GLOBALIT-PE1/13/2019-20, “We understand many of our Branches and offices may still be communicating with each other using WhatsApp chat app and sensitive documents, contents and information may be shared freely using WhatsApp, which is not a secure channel and therefore should not be used as an official mode/channel of communication.”
Pic: Official Directive of the SBI on WhatsApp
Pic Credit: SBI
Point 3 of the circular mandates usage of MS Teams application for official communication.
It says, “It has, therefore, been decided to stop using WhatsApp for official communication with immediate effect and to use MS Teams as a chat app in lieu of WhatsApp. All the branches and offices are therefore requested to ensure that use of WhatsApp is henceforth stopped and replaced with MS Teams.”
Diminishing Rules of Work Life Balance
SBI boasts a comprehensive set of rules governing work-life balance, aiming to prioritise employees' welfare. Despite these guidelines, many SBI employees find themselves working beyond designated hours due to constant exigency, leading to a considerable strain on their personal lives.
And shockingly, SBI officials have revealed the violation of the bank’s stand on the above issue. An official on the condition of not being named said, “We continue working beyond designated working hours on everyday basis in the name of exigency. But exigency cannot be everyday. It’s evident that banks are in a massive shortage of employees.”
Pic: SBI circular on Work Life Balance
The official lamented the habitual offending of rules and added, “Our bank WhatsApp group gets inundated with performance messages from senior officials at night hours creating pressure to think about it beyond official hours.”
The point number 3 in the 2017 circular of the SBI mandates the work life balance. Although the All India Bank Officers Association did not respond to calls on the issue.
But as per State Bank of Staff Union (SBSU), the staff of the SBI stopped using WhatsApp for any official communication. Akhil S, General Secretary, SBSU told Kanal, “Officers in the SBI and other PSBs have been using WhatsApp groups for inputs on daily performances and that's objectionable because it disrupts the personal and professional life balance of the bank's workforce.”
The recent report on Bob World revealed the pressure on bank employees to work under target pressure which led to the financial fiasco.