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Court challenge to Standard's job cuts

Johannesburg - Financial sector union Sasbo said on Monday it had lodged papers in the Labour Court in an effort to get the Standard Bank Group [JSE:SBK] to reopen talks on the retrenchment of staff.

The bank has until Thursday to respond to Sasbo, which said it would ask the court for an urgent interdict to stop the retrenchment process.

Standard, Africa's largest bank by assets, has said it would cut a total of 1 145 permanent and 600 contractor posts in Johannesburg, and 160 permanent and 110 contractors in London.

Standard Bank - which is is 20% owned by Industrial and Commercial Bank of China - also said it would freeze recruitment of new staff.

Sasbo said it wanted Standard to stop the retrenchment process and "engage" with it to find alternatives.

"Sasbo continues to maintain that the bank's action is simply an attempt to boost its short-term profits at the expense of long-serving, loyal employees.

"We want the bank to stop this process and continue engaging Sasbo to meaningfully explore all alternatives in an attempt to avoid these retrenchments",  said Sasbo assistant general secretary Eugene Ebersohn.

He told Fin24 the union wanted the Labour Court to compel Standard Bank to again consult with Sasbo to find "joint alternatives" to job cuts.

Sasbo said expenses should be cut by restricting executive pay increases and bonuses, which would "go extremely far" in reducing costs.

"We cannot accept that all these positions have to be sacrificed so as to allow the bank to generate short-term profits and increase shareholder value," Ebersohn said.

He said Sasbo had "no option" but to take court action against Standard Bank, as it planned to go ahead with the retrenchments.

Sasbo said 15 400 of its members are employed by Standard Bank.

 - Fin24

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