There are currently 34,000 complaints still outstanding and at the current rate getting that backlog cleared by the end of March seems overly optimistic. Although Richard Meddings, acting Executive Director, did say that Peter Navin was “was eating up the complaints”; an interesting choice of words when you’ve been responsible for one of the biggest IT meltdowns ever seen.
The biggest issue in branches is that those seconded staff have not been replaced and staffing levels are at breaking point in many areas. In our Newsletter back in November we said:
“The problem with the Bank’s approach, which on the surface seems like a good idea, is that branches are creaking at the seams already and if hundreds of staff are being taken out branches then those staff that are left are going to be under even more pressure. The Bank is sorting out one problem but creating another for customers and staff”.
It seems that things have gone from bad to worse, especially with the recent increase in sickness levels, but nothing is being done about it. Staff are being told to just get on with it because no new staff are being recruited.
Is it any wonder that in the recent Partner Experience Survey, only 41% of staff across the whole of the TSB said that it was a “psychologically and emotionally healthy place to work”. Across the Distribution Division, which includes the branch network, 45% of staff said that they weren’t given the resources to do their jobs. In the North Region, that figure was down by some 22% on last year.
Staff don’t feel that the Bank is doing anything to help them and it’s simply hanging them out to dry. The idea that you could take hundreds of staff out of the branch network and that it would carry on normally is laughable.
We are also seeing an increasing focus on sales and sales performance and that will be discussed in our Newsletter.
Furthermore, members should also be aware that TSB is planning a further restructuring of the branch network which will see area director groups getting bigger and senior managers covering more branches.
We will return to this issue again in a future Newsletter.
Pay 2019 – Another Sell Out By Accord?
Even the BEC has admitted that the reward results of the Partner Experience Survey were very poor. The key results are as follows:
- Only 42% of staff said that they were being paid fairly for the work they do.
- 61% of staff said that they didn’t receive a fair share of the profits made by the TSB.
- Only 51% of TSB staff said that they were satisfied with their personal financial situation.
Last year staff in TSB, who got between 1% to 2.5%, depending on the position in the pay range, got one of the lowest pay deals in the finance sector. And that was at a time when inflation was rampant.
Accord, through inaction, supported that pay deal and they must not be allowed to get away with such a deal again this year. We estimated at the time that the vast majority of TSB staff would see their pay reduce in real terms by on average 2.1%. And that is what happened.
Inflation is running at 2.7%, so increases less than that will see TSB staff suffering another year of pay stagnation. And let’s not forget, staff in TSB lost out when it reached an agreement with Accord to scrap the Award for 2019.
Pay Increase For TSB Chief Executive Criticised By Advisory Group
The influential advisory service ISS had issued a warning over boardroom pay at CYBG, the owner of Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks and Virgin Money, which it bought for £1.7bn in October. In addition to criticising the long term incentive plans for the Chief Executive and Finance Officer, ISS said that the 5.6% pay rise for Chief Operating Officer Debbie Crosbie, who will be joining the TSB in the next few months, “was not supported by a compelling rationale”.
Given that she stepped down from the CYBG board in November, it will be interesting whether she accepts the pay increase ISS doesn’t feel she deserves.
Members can let us know how they feel on these issues by contacting us at 24hours@tbuonline.co.uk.