Job losses in financial institutions hitting ‘recovery hopes’

A report by the Unite union has revealed that job losses in financial institutions will have an impact on their chances of recovering from the recession.

Approximately 20,000 jobs have been axed by finance firms since the start of 2009 and the cull of skilled workers could jeopardise their chances of a recovery in the future.

Since the start of the year, around 4,500 people have lost their jobs at Royal Bank of Scotland, while almost 2,000 were lost at Merrill Lynch. Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group and Aviva were among another finance firms to be involved in substantial job losses.

Unite’s national officer, Rob MacGregor, said: “Confidence in the sector can only be regained through the efforts of the vital staff in branches, processing and call centres up and down the country.”

“We are infuriated that banks and insurance companies are failing to recognise the damage that will be done to their businesses if they continue to simply slash thousands of staff each month“, added Mr MacGregor.

“The financial services industry must ensure that it protects its workforce in order to stand a chance of emerging from the current crisis”, explained Mr MacGregor.

According to the union, members who have lost their jobs include staff in processing centres, bank branches and insurance offices and were not the highly paid executives and traders that caused the economic meltdown.

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