Update on on-going talks

More information on steps to keep you safe

We’ve still got more to do, but there is some progress to report:

Here’s a quick update on our on-going talks with the Community Bank leadership team. We’ve still got more to do, but there is some progress to report:

Customer behaviour

Whilst the messages that have gone out so far are welcome, our view is that the bank’s messaging around abusive customers and wearing face masks needs to go up a gear. We’ve seen more supportive messages coming from Supermarket CEOs and some banks too. The business has agreed to review.

Servicing customers

The business has responded positively to our calls to put on hold its ‘explore’ phase and will revert to phase 3 ‘support’. CRM at counter will also be removed (except for the collection of telephone numbers) so no deep conversations about wider needs will be expected. Whilst this isn’t a reversion back to ‘restrict’ phase, it should mean customers can be served more quickly, thus limiting the time spent in close proximity to each customer.

On-call colleagues

The business is committed to helping on-call colleagues who are financially impacted by this lockdown. One to ones will be held with every on-call colleague to explore how best they can be supported.

Customer surveys

We don’t yet have a response about why these are still being undertaken and what the results are being used for. We’ll report back when we hear more.

Supporting other business areas

We’re waiting for more detail, but we know that this will mean colleagues being asked to return to their full contracted hours (or as near as possible) to support other areas of the business when the branch closes to the public.

If you have safety concerns about travelling at peak times, the business will support the use of alternative transport – such as your own car or taxi – and will consider alternative working patterns that allow you to travel at different times. Where agreed with your line manager, additional costs for travel can be reclaimed using the usual claims process.

We’ve raised the issue of ventilation in branches once the doors are closed to the public, but the bank is confident that its branches are safe spaces from which to carry out critical support work.

We’ll contact you again when we have more information to share on these issues. In the meantime, if you have particular concerns you’d like to discuss, please get in touch with the officer who covers your workplace.

Newsflash ends.