RBS to axe 3,700 UK jobs

by Gill Montia

Story link: RBS to axe 3,700 UK jobs

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) announced a further 3,700 UK job losses hours before the details of its latest £33.5 billion bailout were revealed.

The group, which will see the taxpayer’s interest rise from 70% to 84% with the latest round of support, is cutting its workforce by 14% having already announced around 16,000 job losses worldwide since the start of the credit crisis.

According to a report in Scotland’s Daily Record, 650 jobs in the region will go over two years, with losses coming from the bank’s 4,400-strong Scottish branch network.

The news comes alongside proposals for RBS and Lloyds Banking Group to be broken up to comply with EU competition rules.

RBS is expected to sell 318 branches across the UK, including its NatWest brand in Scotland.

The group’s insurance business, which includes Direct Line and Churchill, its Global Merchant Services and Sempra Commodities units will also be auctioned off, as will its card payment business.

In other banking jobs news, HSBC has announced further staff cuts of 1,700 as it overhauls its branch management structure and consolidates payments and card services operations in Birmingham.