Lloyds Banking Group Cuts 1,850 more Jobs
Lloyds Banking Group says that they plan to ax another 1,850 jobs as part of cost-cutting measures that threaten even hundreds more. The bank is closing an insurance office in Nottingham, as well as cutting back on office support staff. The group says that they have made progress mitigating the total number of job cuts through relocating, redeploying and releasing temporary staff, which will limit the amount of full-time permanent job losses to just 650.
Since the company’s merger with HBOS in October 2008, these new cuts will bring the total of redundancies to 17,700, according to Unite. Unite national officer Cath Speight says that these cuts are extreme. The company needs to focus on keeping the hard-working staff that have made sure their customers have gotten the highest level of service possible during the last 18 months, Speight added.
Lloyds also revealed that they plan to close a network of 265 counters in Halifax within firms, like at estate agencies and solicitors. The closures will most likely mean more jobs will be lost, although they won’t be people that the bank directly employees. Halifax Community Bank managing director David Nicholson says that the number of independent firms has greatly declined over recent years. They have taken the tough decision that these agencies are no longer integral to their business model after completing a new strategic review, he added.
In a separate agreement, customers that bank in Halifax will be able to deposit cheques and cash at 12,000 Post Office counters for the first time. It is hoped that the facility will be put in place just 6 weeks from now.