Lloyds Banking Group, the British government-controlled banking giant, said Thursday that it would cut nearly 1,000 jobs over the next two years. Changes to LBG's motor finance business would "result in the loss of 910 full-time jobs which affects 985 full and part time colleagues over a two-year period," the bank said in a statement.
LBG said it was consolidating the motor finance businesses of HBOS and Lloyds TSB, which merged to create the new group, and added that all staff who would be impacted by the decision had already been briefed by their managers.
Last month, the British government said it was taking a majority stake in the banking group and would guarantee its toxic assets, increasing its ownership from 43 percent to 65 percent. LBG was created in January when Lloyds TSB bought rival lender HBOS, which faced collapse because it was struggling to raise funds due to the credit crunch.
Trade unions urged LBG to ensure that compulsory redundancies were avoided, while warning that news of the job cuts would cause major uncertainty for the bank's staff. "Unite see this announcement as the first test for the newly-formed Lloyds Banking Group to demonstrate its commitment to avoid compulsory redundancies," said Rob MacGregor, national officer for the Unite union.