ISLAMABAD, Feb 1: The National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) has invited its trade union federation for talks on their charter of demands.

Sources told Dawn that the bank management had sent letters to office-bearers of the federation on Friday on the directives of the National Industrial Relations Commission (NIRC).

The NBP Trade Unions Federation had submitted a charter of demands to the management seeking better facilities and improvement in the working atmosphere and some other benefits on December 31, 2007.

An office-bearer of the federation told Dawn that the bank employees staged protest rallies throughout the country on January 23 when the management did not respond to their demands.

He alleged that the management had started “harassing union members” and suspended some of them.

Later, he said, they filed a petition before the National Industrial Relations Commission which not only directed the bank management to hold talks with the union, but also stopped it from taking any further action against its employees.

About 13,000 employees are working in the bank and the union does not want to create an ugly situation as the country is already going through a serious crisis.

He expressed the hope that they would succeed in persuading the management to accept their demands.