State Bank of India employee strike settled

April 10, 2006 Negotiations between the State Bank of India and its employees over pension benefits have resulted in a settlement, ending a seven-day strike.

The bank, which is based in Mumbai and majority-owned by the nation's central bank, is India's largest commercial bank, with over 9000 branch offices.

The settlement calls for workers whose final monthly salary was up to 21,040 rupees (US$471) to receive half that amount as pension; workers with salaries larger than that would receive 40%. The bank's previous pension maximum was 4,250 rupees (US$95)

The bank's 200,000 employees will return to work Monday.