Type
Closure
Country
United Kingdom
Region
South East; Hampshire and Isle of Wight; Southampton
Location of affected unit(s)
Southampton
Sector
Administrative Services
Office Administrative, Office Support And Other Business Support Activities
Activities Of Call Centres
82.20 - Activities of call centres

243 jobs
Number of planned job losses
Job loss
Announcement Date
24 July 2019
Employment effect (start)
Foreseen end date
31 December 2019

Description

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) announced plans to close its contact centre in Southampton by the end of 2019, resulting in the loss of 243 jobs. The closure of the Southampton site follows the job cuts in the bank's operations in Greenock. While the decision to cut jobs at Greenock was attributed to changes in customer preferences, the decision to close the Southampton call centre appears to be related to the lease on the premises, which is due to expire in May 2020. The national officer for the Unite union has called on the bank to reconsider its decision. According to the report, the bank intends to create new roles in Manchester and Southend, but considering the distance of these sites from Southampton, the solution may be unrealistic for many employees even if redeployment were to be offered. 


Sources

Citation

Eurofound (2019), Royal Bank of Scotland, Closure in United Kingdom, factsheet number 98247, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/98247.