Introduction
State Bank of India, being one of the dream organizations to work for, hires for two different scales. SBI hires for the position of clerks and probationary officers. Though both the positions are highly coveted in the society, they have striking dissimilarities between their job profiles.
In this article, we shall bring out the differences between the job profiles. We shall also discuss the reason for the difference in the salary of both the positions. Touching on the career graph between them as well as transfer policies, the article shall be a real eye-opener for all the aspirants for the SBI exam.
PO vs Clerk
The craze for SBI PO amongst the candidates is undeniably huge. With more than 3 lakh students applying for SBI PO exam, every year, it makes it a point to discuss the specialties of the post:
Brand Name: State Bank of India is among the fortune 500 companies, under 250 globally. The brand of SBI is one of the most promising brands on the resume. Being a government job that provides a working culture of a corporation, is one of the best organizations to be a part of.
Growth: The growth of the career as SBI PO is quicker when compared to the SBI clerk. SBI clerk, being a junior associate, has two routes of becoming an officer. The internal route of promotion or the external route of cracking the SBI PO exam is the only two ways. Arundhati Bhattacharya is one of the best examples of the growth of a career that an SBI PO can have. Starting her career as an SBI PO she went ahead to lead the bank.
Power: The power which is levied on the officer of SBI is way more than that of an SBI Clerk. SBI PO has the power of disbursal of loans as well as controlling the entire branch. Looking after the operations of his branch makes him a key member of SBI.
Higher education: SBI provides sabbatical to their employees who are looking forward to having higher education. Even women are allowed to be on sabbaticals for as much as two years for the reasons for their children and family.
Authority: SBI PO demands authority and responsibility. The autonomy, authority, and accountability of the job makes it very different from SBI Clerk. SBI clerk doesn’t require the employees to be accountable for their actions on a larger scale, thus reducing their power too.
Accentuated learning: This is another point where an SBI PO scores better than an SBI Clerk. Though learning is personal and depends more on personal interests, SBI PO has better learning compared to the clerks. It also means stretched working hours and loss of work-life balance. In the longer run, during promotions, SBI PO rises up the ranks quicker, compared to SBI Clerk.
SBI PO and SBI Clerk differ in their payment structure. The difference in the pay matrix for the basic pay brings about a change in the ultimate salary. At the same time, there is also a difference in the perks received by SBI PO and SBI Clerk.
| SBI Clerk | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Earning | Deductions | ||
| Basic Pay | 13,730.00 | EPF contribution | 1,406.00 |
| Dearness Allowance | 10,843.00 | Professional Tax | 200.00 |
| HRA | 1,406.00 | Contributory Pension Fund | 2,415.00 |
| Transport Allowance | 425.00 | ||
| Special Pay | 330.00 | ||
| City Compensatory Allowance | - | ||
| Special Allowance | 1,064.00 | ||
| 27798 | 4021 | ||
| In-Hand Salary | 23,777.00 | ||
Note: The in-hand salary received by an SBI Clerk is around Rs 23,780. The amount received is after the deduction of the professional tax and EPF contribution. If you have taken any loan against your salary, it shall also be deducted from your monthly salary. Other than the above salary, if an SBI Clerk is in the marketing department, he can earn a handsome commission of around Rs 10,000 over and top of the salary.
SBI PO Salary
| RBI Assistant | SBI Clerk | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | Meaning | Term | Meaning |
| Ensuring stability | The financial stability is provided by the RBI assistants by their involvement in the functioning of the RBI’s activities. | Customer handling | This is the most basic responsibility which is being handed over to the SBI clerk. Looking after the customers in the cash counter by working as a cashier and handling the currency is a fundamental function. |
| Book Keeping | Looking after the official documents as well as maintaining the files and documents become important administrative work too. | Support to the Manager | Extending support to the branch manager is a vital function. During the recovery of loans as well as the filling up of the loan documents, an SBI Clerk assists the branch manager. |
| Data Entry | Though the world has moved into digitization, the banks are yet to catch the trend. | Data Entry: | Like an RBI Assistant, the SBI Clerk is also responsible for bookkeeping and data entry. Looking after the records and maintaining them is a highly essential function of an SBI clerk. |
| Verification | The verification of the documents of the bank, along with the work of the treasury and the handling of mails becomes an integral part of the work of an RBI Assistant. | Cross selling | The major share of profit of SBI comes through cross-selling of insurance products. An SBI Clerk is responsible for meeting the targets put forward by the regional manager. BY cross-selling, the SBI Clerks earn a major portion of their incentives. |
| Treasury maintenance | Maintaining the treasury as well as keeping a note of the minimum balance required to be maintained in cash at the end of the day. It helps the branch to not fall below the minimum limit and pay any penalty due to the same. | ||
| City Compensatory Allowance | 870 | ||
| Special Allowance | 2140 | ||
| Total | 51,298.00 | 7,412.00 | |
| 43,886.00 |
Note: The salary of an SBI PO after the deduction of all the components comes nearly double to that of SBI Clerk. Other than the above salary, if any SBI PO is looking to forego HRA and avail lease accommodation, SBI has provisions for the same. The maximum amount of lease accommodation that can be availed is Rs 20,000.
SBI PO and SBI Clerk, other than having differences in salary, also have gaps in the perks. The reason for the gap is the increased responsibility in the roles and duties of an SBI PO over a clerk. Whereas a clerk is only responsible for the cash counter, an officer is responsible for the operation of the entire branch. Looking after the disbursal of loans as well as cross-selling of the products are under the ambit of an officer. Overall, keeping the entire branch functional is the key responsibility and accountability of an SBI PO. So, is why the gap in the payment between the two ranks.