Letter to Bank on Refinements in Promotion Policy

NATIONAL BANK OFFICERS’ ASSOCIATION (AINBOA)

C/O NABARD, HO, BANDRA-KURLA COMPLEX, MUMBAI

 

24 November 2014

The Chairman
NABARD
Head Office
Mumbai

Dear Sir ,

Policy for Recruitment, Succession Planning

and Career Progression for Officers            

Please refer to Head Office Circular No.219/HRMD.PA/6313/ST-1/2014-15 dated 13/11/2014 on the captioned subject. In this connection, we very humbly, bring to your kind notice the following -

1.    At the outset, we thank you and the bank for agreeing to revisit and REFINE the preceding policy document on the subject matter, which has inter alia created a lot of complexities and industrial unrest in our august organization.

2.    We also place on record our gratitude for encouraging wide scale consultation on the subject matter inspite of the fact that merely 3% of the officers community responded directly to the bank in response to the solicitation for the feedback.

3.    Though many of our suggestions and feedback provided to the bank, collected through the mechanism of having a wide spread interaction through our GBs across the Units, has not found the favor of the management for being included in the current policy document, AINBOA does find the present policy a refined, better and transparent policy document in comparison to the earlier policy which spelt doom for natural and corporate justice forcing AINBOA to approach the Hon’ble High court of Mumbai for reprieve .

4.    We are specially thankful to bank for including the officers of other supporting services too within the ambit of the present policy.

5.     Sir, you will agree that though a Policy once framed should have a reasonable tenure, generally of 3-5 years, there always is a scope to rethink and improve upon it concurrently. We, therefore, very humbly and earnestly request you to re-consider the following aspects of the present Policy and take remedial decisions.

i)             The calling ratio of 1:1.75 for fresh candidates, without any upper cap, for deciding the ZOC for promotions in grade ‘C’ to ‘D’ and above is very high, specially keeping in view that with reduction in eligibility tenure a fair and reasonable number of FRESH candidates along with REPEATER candidates will be available with the bank to have a fairly stringent selection process. Sir, you will agree, that without any upper cap on the calling ratio, besides diluting the seniority aspect and creating a wide spread demotivation, a situation will very soon arise in all grades that bank will not be able to find FRESH candidates to initiate the selection process. REPEATERS will outnumber FRESHERS by a great majority, to illustrate we provide a factual position which will be encountered in next 2/3 years in grade ‘D’ to ‘E’

Panel year	No. of Likely Vacancies	No. of Repeat candidates	No. of fresh candidates	Total candidates	Selection To Non Selection Ratio
2015	40	30	70	100	1:2.5
2016	40	60	70	130	1:3.25
2017	40	90	70	160	1:4

Similar or worst scenario will emerge in case of Grade ‘C’ to ‘D’ and ‘E’ to ‘F’ promotion exercise during the next 2/3 years and upwards. Sir, you will agree that most of the officers presently and in next 2 to 3 years ZOC in grade C and grade D have reached this cadre after putting in 25 years plus service in NABARD and such large scale rejections at senior levels will lead to a simmering discontentment and demotivation at the senior executive and middle management levels. We, therefore request you to introduce a ‘safety cap’ in calling ratios by capping the ratio of Vacancy to All candidates (inclusive of Fresh & Repeat candidates) called at 1: 3, as was the provision in earlier policies.

ii)  The introduction of Trigger point mechanism is a welcome initiative of the bank and it vindicates our long pending demand of creating upgraded posts/vacancies to deal with the problem of stagnation. However, the pre-requisite of having a 9 years tenure holding FRESH candidate in the present grade to initiate the TRIGGER POINT PROCESS may kindly be looked into. Going by the present seniority and empirical facts the TRIGGER POINT mechanism will never be activated in next 6 to 8 years. Sir, you will appreciate that the present promotion policy has certain very stringent threshold criterion for earning promotion to next higher grade viz. PAR cut-offs, Written test cut-offs and Interview Cut Offs and coupled with the vacancy based descending order of merit criterion, it has been our experience , which can be validated by HRMD through hard data based facts , that many officers are devoid of career progression inspite of them obtaining scoring high levels of overall ratings (90%+). The trigger point mechanism is precisely need to address such situations. Sir, you will very kindly agree that endeavor of an organization is to provide actual career progression to its officer who are deemed to be upto the mark for earning a promotion and not merely to give them a chance to participate in the promotion process. We, therefore once again request you to make available the concept of Trigger Point mechanism to all the officers (irrespective of Fresh or Repeat candidates) who have completed 9 years in their respective grades and are otherwise found suitable for being considered for promotion to higher grade. 

iii)          We also request you to introduce a training component for Written Test module in grade ‘C’ to ‘D’ for all the officers. This will not only help the officers in ensuring a better preparedness for the examination but will also be in tune with the practice being followed at RBI. 

We , therefore, believe  that keeping in view historical perspective as also the past practices (prior to 2012 specifically), adoption of systems & process as being followed  by RBI in its promotion policy , from time to time, will have a unanimous acceptance among all officers.

As such, AINBOA, therefore, once again requests you to consider adoption of promotion methodology as is being followed in RBI in respect of promotions process in NABARD in all grades, including in B to C and D to E as also in respect of ‘Calling Rate Ratio’.

 

Thanking you

Yours Sincerely,

      Sd/-

(Dr. D S Chauhan)

General Secretary