35,000 jobs face the axe at HSBC

Bank under fire for sweeping cuts after promise to put them on hold

HSBC is facing another backlash after pushing ahead with brutal plans to axe 35,000 jobs worldwide despite initially putting them on hold during the virus crisis.

In a memo to staff, the boss of the embattled banking giant Noel Quinn said the huge cuts were now ‘even more necessary’ after its profits have been hammered by the pandemic.

He said the job losses could not be delayed ‘indefinitely’ and that some staff may be laid off before the end of the year.

But the move has triggered a bruising clash with trade unions, just as the bank has become embroiled with a row with MPs and the White House over its controversial support of the Chinese government’s crackdown on Hong Kong.

It heightens fears of a wider ‘jobs meltdown’ this summer, with many companies expected to rush to cut posts before support from the Government’s furlough scheme is gradually wound down from August.

A string of firms, including British Airways, BP, and British Gas owner Centrica, have already announced plans to shed tens of thousands of staff.

Quinn originally announced the sweeping cuts at HSBC in February, part of a plan to save £3.6bn by 2022. But staff were given a reprieve in March when he said most redundancies would be delayed because of the ‘extraordinary impact of the Covid-19 pandemic’.

However, yesterday he said they would now resume, telling staff that ‘challenging times’ were ahead and that most recruitment would be frozen.

His announcement followed a 48pc slump in the bank’s firstquarter profits last month, when it warned that £9bn worth of loans could turn sour because of the crisis.

Quinn’s memo said: ‘I wish I could say that the next few months will see a return to normality, but that is unlikely to be the case.

‘You will have seen that our profits fell in the first quarter and virtually all economic forecasts point to challenging times ahead.

‘The reality is that the measures and the changes we announced in February are even more necessary today.

‘We could not pause the job losses indefinitely. It was always a question of “not if, but when”.’

The changes will see the bank slash its 235,000-strong workforce to around 200,000 over the next three years.

It has not given a country-bycountry breakdown but a ‘meaningful’ number of jobs are expected to go in the UK, where some 40,000 staff are based.

Analysts have predicted as many as 15,000 jobs could go in Britain alone, many of them in the bank’s Canary Wharf headquarters, which has been dubbed the Tower of Doom by some staff.

But trade union Unite questioned the timing of the decision and has vowed to oppose compulsory redundancies.

National officer Dominic Hook said: ‘The question that must be asked today is “Why now HSBC?”

At present, vast numbers of staff are making massive sacrifices working from home or taking risks travelling into offices and bank branches to help customers.

‘Now is the time for HSBC to stand by its workforce and recognise these mighty efforts, and see that the bank’s strength lies within its workforce.’

A number of banks have paused redundancy programmes due to the pandemic but HSBC’s decision will raise fears they will now be resumed across the board.

Virgin Money and Lloyds Banking Group are among those that have temporarily frozen planned cuts.

But the Institute of Directors has warned there would be ‘grim news in the weeks ahead’ with ‘swathes of jobs at risk’ around the UK.

Ian Cass, managing director of the Forum of Private Business said: ‘We are facing jobs meltdown over the summer.’