Santander has put 874 jobs at risk of redundancy as it goes ahead with the closure of its face-to-face advice offering.
In February of this year the bank closed its bancassurance division to new business in order to re-evaluate its advice offering.
It subsequently informed 874 staff in early March that their jobs were at risk, and they would be made redundant on 7 May 2013 unless other roles were found.
Some of these employees may be able to take up positions in the new 150-strong financial planning team, meaning at least 724 employees could lose their jobs.
According to a statement, Santander will also consider these employees for roles in its retail division including the mass affluent ‘Select’ division and business banking.
A spokesperson for Santander said: “There is never a good time to announce changes such as this and we are acutely aware of the uncertainty staff are facing. We are working closely with other business areas to ensure that many of those who may be impacted are able to secure roles in a growing Santander Group and we are committed to redeploying as many colleagues as possible.
“We will continue to consult with the unions this period of change and we will be offering full outplacement support.
“Santander UK will continue to provide advice to existing customers with maturing investments. We will also continue to explore how and to whom we can provide face-to-face advice, within the new regulatory framework, in a way that benefits and protects customers, our colleagues and indeed Santander itself.”
