39 branch closures announced today
26 Lloyds, 9 Halifax and 4 Bank of Scotland branches will close between June 2023 and September 2023.
No colleague will be placed at risk of redundancy, a position which Accord fully supports.
There is a job for every impacted colleague whether that’s in a branch or another part of the Group.
But every branch that closes has an impact on our members and the bank’s customers. For our members, there’s the possibility of disruption to working hours, location, and work-life balance as well as possible increased commute costs and travelling time.
We’ve worked hard to ensure that no colleague will be out of pocket by securing a commitment from LBG to finance any reasonable additional travel costs associated with moving to a different base branch for up to 2 years.
Previously colleagues were excluded from financial assistance if the move was less than an additional 10 miles one way. This restriction was removed for any Community Bank announcements made from 1 January 2022 to 31 March 2023 and reasonable financial assistance will be paid as a travel cost allowance for a period of up to 2 years to members impacted by these closures.
Although this assistance will be welcome, it won’t suit everyone as it’s a cost which must be borne by colleagues after the two years allowance is ended. That, in effect, is a real reduction in net pay. Accord has been pressing LBG for some considerable time to review these outdated terms. Colleagues should not have to pay the costs they incur because of closure decisions made by LBG.
Any Accord member who faces working hours/pattern changes or impacts to work/life balance that they can’t work through locally will have our full support to find a mutually acceptable and fair solution.
For customers, there is of course the inconvenience of changing to the nearest Post Office / branch and the loss of trusted relationships with LBG staff formed over many years.
Supporting members
We’ll be contacting our members who are impacted by the closures to offer support and guidance.
Any more general enquiries should be referred to [email protected]
