RBS faces backlash over tech offshoring move

RBS is facing a union backlash amid plans to cut more than 250 tech staff and offshore dozens of jobs to India.

The bank informed staff yesterday it will be letting go of 154 contractors by year-end, while 180 permanent roles have been put at risk – with a total of 92 staff positions set to be axed.

It also emerged that RBS is on track to offshore 38 tech roles to India.

The move comes just months after chief executive Ross McEwan ordered a £2 billion fouryear cost-cutting drive, which is widely expected to result in significant job losses and branch closures.

An RBS spokesman said: “As RBS moves towards becoming a simpler, smaller UK focused bank, we’re continuing to restructure our back office support and reducing its size so it’s a better fit for our business.

“Unfortunately, these changes will result in the net reduction of 92 roles.

“We understand this will be difficult news for staff and will be offering support to those affected, including redeploying people into other roles where we can”.

The cuts are expected to affect tech staff across a number of the bank’s departments including risk solutions, digital engineering services, finance solutions, core and payments, and NatWest markets technology.

Rob MacGregor, a national officer at Unite, said the union has hit out at the bank over the job cuts and is now calling on RBS to introduce a moratorium on the offshoring of jobs.

“Unite cannot understand how RBS, which continues to be taxpayerbacked, can justify hundreds more staff cuts and continue transferring important work out of the country,” he said.

“It is wholly inappropriate and unjustified for these technology roles to be sent offshore.

“Unite has called on RBS to halt the offshoring announcements and impose a moratorium on the offshoring of jobs.

“The loss of these jobs to India does nothing to support the wellbeing and livelihood of UK workers and their families.

“This is not in the taxpayer interest.”

The union is also pressing RBS, which is still 72% owned by the government, to guarantee there will be no forced job losses as a result.

The news comes ahead of the bank’s AGM at Gogarburn in Edinburgh tomorrow.

RBS’s Gogarburn headquarters.