Lloyds bank axing 1,300 more jobs

Union leaders reacted with anger today to the "terrible news" that banking giant Lloyds is to axe another 1,300 jobs.

The Accord union said banks had cut 30,000 jobs since 2009.

General secretary Ged Nichols said the jobs will go mainly in the bank's risk and corporate divisions across the UK.

He said: "Today's announcement, which is the first tranche of the extra 15,000 job losses forecast in LBG's recent Strategic Review, means that the bank has shed 30,000 jobs since February 2009 and the impact on employee morale of these incessant job cuts is what you would expect.

"Accord has informed LBG that it must do everything possible to avoid compulsory redundancies and work with us to provide support and guidance to those affected."

David Fleming, national officer of the Unite union, said: "This latest decision is astonishing and will send ripples of shock across the entire business as it signifies the reality and misery that faces hard-working staff.

"Over 1,000 staff from the Lloyds business functions in risk, insurance, retail, wealth and international, operations and corporate affairs have today been informed that there will be cuts in their area.

"Unite is demanding that the Lloyds Banking Group puts to an end the widespread practice of employing agency and temporary staff while making thousands of permanent employee redundant.

"This approach is abhorrent and instead Lloyds should be redeploying and retraining its existing workforce to limit the impact caused by their restructuring plans."

Lloyds Banking said 1,120 of the job losses were previously announced in the group's strategic review in June when new chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio said the state-controlled bank would shed 15,000 jobs by 2014 to save £1.5 billion.

The remaining 180 are part of the group's ongoing three-year integration programme following the 2009 merger between Lloyds and HBOS, which is due to end this year.

Almost 45,000 roles will have been lost following the merger of the two banks once the latest job cuts are completed.

PA