Introduction
Working under the Reserve Bank of India is a sense of pride and honor. The post of RBI Assistant is regarded as the most coveted posts in the banking industry. Providing excellent growth opportunities, RBI Assistants can go to as high as Grade C posts in RBI. SBI Clerk, on the other hand, is a well-established post that is involved in public handling. If you are someone who enjoys dealing with the public dealing, SBI Clerk can be an excellent position.
In this article, we shall draw the stark difference between RBI Assistant and SBI clerk. We shall also discover which one should you choose, such that you can reap the best benefits out of them.
Hiring
The hiring for the RBI Assistant and SBI Clerk are somewhere on the similar lines. The pattern of exam that is used for hiring them is of a similar pattern. But, the level of the exam is where the real difference lies. The competition for the RBI Assistant is way over the SBI clerk exam. The biggest reason for attraction to RBI Assistant is home city posting and administrative work.
Job duties
Job duties and responsibilities
There is a striking difference between the responsibilities of an RBI Assistant and an SBI Clerk. SBI is a for-profit organization wants its employees to focus more on cross-selling. On the other hand, RBI is a non-profit organization. Its building block is to look at the overall functioning of the economic system of the country. It is not looking forward to generating any profit. Hence, the job description of RBI Assistant is designed to be mechanistic and administrative in nature.
| RBI Assistant | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 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. | ||
Career
The growth in the career for the cases is highly subjective and meteoric. The grade jumps for an RBI Assistant come along with an exponential increase in salary. The promotion is either based on the merit of the candidate or on the tenure based. An RBI Assistant has to pass the internal examination to have a promotion or has to serve as long as 3 years as an RBI Assistant and also clear the JAIIB & CAIIB examination. It makes him eligible for merit-based promotion. This is the case for RBI Assistant to Grade A promotion. For Grade A to B and onwards, it lies at the discretion of RBI.
For an SBI Clerk, the clerk can either go for a promotion within the clerk cadre or move for a clerk to officer cadre. If there is a promotion to officer cadre, an SBI Clerk is eligible to become TO after 3 years of service. After a service of more than 6 years, a clerk can be given entry to JMGS I directly, through examinations, under fast-track promotion.
Salary
| RBI Assistant | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Earning | Deductions | ||
| Basic Pay | 14650 | 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 | ||
| Special Allowance | 2040 | ||
| Grade Allowance | 2200 | ||
| Total | 35,751.00 | ||
| 32,449.00 | |||
Note: The income tax deducted from the salary is based on the other variable factors. The in-hand salary comes close to around Rs 28, 000. Along with it, if someone decides not to avail the HRA, but stay on lease accommodation, RBI provides 2 BHK flats worth Rs 10,000 as a leased apartment.
| SBI Clerk | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Earning | Deductions | ||
| Basic Pay | 13,730.00 | EPF contribution | 1,406.00 |
| Dearness Allowance | 10,843.00 | Professional Tax | 2000 |
| HRA | 1,406.00 | Contributory Pension Fund | 2,415.00 |
| Transport Allowance | 425.00 | ||
| Special Pay | 0 | ||
| Special Pay | 330.00 | ||
| City Compensatory Allowance | |||
| Special Allowance | 1,064.00 | ||
| Grade Allowance | |||
| 27798 | 4021 | ||
| In Hand Salary | 23,777.00 | ||
Note: The salary of an SBI clerk comes to be around Rs 24,000 (in-hand). But, an SBI Clerk is not eligible for any form of accommodation. The above table clearly shows the difference in salary structure between the posts.
What to select: RBI Assistant vs SBI Clerk? Our final suggestion is you should not look at the starting salary and choose your profession. Make sure you have the qualities needed for the tasks that are being performed in both the organizations and select the one which is best for you. If you love dealing with customers, SBI Clerk shall be a better option. But, if you prefer administrative work, don’t shy away from the RBI assistant.