Members will recall that earlier this year Mr. Cesar Gonzalez-Bueno, the Sabadell Chief Executive Officer, let the genie out of the bottle when he said that TSB had set aside £29 million for job cuts and branch closures. TSB tried to put the genie back in the bottle telling staff that: “despite the headlines, any further potential changes are still some way off”.
Well, that wasn’t true. TSB has now announced that it is closing 36 more branches, and 250 more staff are being redundant. That’s on top of the 300 redundancies already announced this year. TSB has said that many of those 250 jobs will be going to an “existing third-party supplier”. Members are asking whether that third-party supplier is in fact based in India and good, well-paid jobs are being offshored, again, to save money?
TSB has also said that it is reducing the opening hours in a further 81 branches. Staff in those branches will still be expected to deal with customers but via telephony when the branches are closed to customers. We all also need to be realistic. Reducing opening hours is just a precursor to closing branches.
In several business areas TSB is opening voluntary severance registers to deal with the impending redundancies. We think TSB should open a company-wide voluntary severance register because the reality is that falling profits are going to lead to more closures and redundancies. Those staff that want to leave on the agreed terms can do so at agreed times, whist those that want to stay can be protected and given opportunities to up-skill ready for the future.
Members with any questions on the latest round of job losses or who want to discuss their options should contact the Union’s Advice Team on 01234 716029 (Option 1).
MEMBERS SHOULD PASS THIS NEWSLETTER ON TO THEIR COLLEAGUES SO THEY TOO CAN BENEFIT FROM THE ONLY INDEPENDENT TRADE UNION IN TSB.