Hundreds of banking jobs to go at NatWest

Owner RBS, which is 80 per cent owned by the taxpayer, said 336 branch managers in England and Wales and 25 deputy managers in London will be cut.

The losses will be offset by 116 new jobs, most of which will be filled by those affected by the cuts.

Unite accused the bank of pursuing a “crude, cost-cutting agenda” at the expense of customer service. National officer Rob MacGregor said over 30,000 jobs had been lost from the group since RBS was bailed out by the taxpayer in 2008, adding: “These latest job losses are at odds with RBS’s commitment to improve customer service and move managers closer to the customer.

“Crude cost cutting – and not the customer – is at the heart of the bank’s plans which will mean fewer managers, further away from the customer, with less time to improve the customer experience.

“We need a relentless focus on the customer if public trust in the banking sector is to be renewed, not job losses to simply increase operating profits or the continued uncertainty that is plaguing loyal staff who have worked tirelessly to turn the bank around.

“There are major concerns around the viability of this latest restructure and the workloads for staff remaining post reorganisation.”

An RBS and NatWest spokesman said: “All of our branches will continue to have a branch manager – this change will not affect how we serve our customers.

“This is clearly difficult news for staff affected by these changes. We will do everything we can to support them; including seeking redeployment opportunities wherever possible and ensuring that compulsory redundancies are kept to a minimum.”