Lloyds TSB has announced it is to cut 5000 jobs after reporting an eight per cent drop in profits over the last year.

It says the jobs will go this year and will mainly be from central and support areas. However, 2000 jobs will also be created in "customer facing" sales and service areas.

Forum Response: Lloyds TSB

A spokesman for Lloyds TSB told ePolitix.com: "We will be extending our efficiency programmes in 2002, resulting in about 5000 fewer jobs in central and support functions, but this will be offset by an increase of 2000 jobs in customer facing services and sales areas. The net reductions will therefore total around 3000 jobs.

"We have an excellent track record in managing job reductions of this size and our aim, as always, will be to achieve these through normal staff turnover and voluntary measures. About 9000 staff leave the group through natural turnover each year.

"Even after these reductions we will still employ more people at the end of 2002 than we did at the end of 2000".

Forum Response: Unifi

Iain MacLean, deputy general secretary of Unifi, told ePolitix.com: "There is no justification for compulsory redundancies. We will fight to ensure that all job losses are voluntary and staff who want to remain with the bank are offered re-training and re-deployment."

"The bank has not justified this latest round of redundancies. It seems ironic that on the day the bank announces profits of £3550 million it also announces job cuts. We suspect this decision is more about the share price than based on a coherent long term staffing strategy.

"We welcome the creation of 2000 new customer focused jobs. We have lobbied the bank about low staffing levels and the stress that our members are under, and will be monitoring the situation to ensure that the stress is not simply transferred from the front office to the back office."