Lloyds TSB is offshoring as many as 450 extra UK IT jobs
from the Technical Delivery part of its IT division to India. The
move puts 250 permanent workers at risk of redundancy.
The bank has said that it wants to utilise the skills of
outsourcers.
"Information technology is the backbone of our business, and by
combining the diverse skills of our staff with those of other
companies, we can provide the best possible service to our
customers," the bank said in a statement.
Steve Tatlow, assistant general secretary at Lloyds TSB Group's
union, said the move is aimed at cost cutting.
"The transfer of yet more jobs to India shows a complete
disregarded for corporate social responsibility by senior
management. It shows no hesitation in making redundant the jobs of
its existing UK staff merely because it can replace them with
lower-paid workers in India.
Since 2003 when Lloyds TSB first announced its offshoring plans,
it has exported as many as 3,000 UK jobs to India.
A Lloyds TSB spokesman said the bank will offer all 250
permanent staff new roles within the company.
"We have announced that we will offshore up to 250 permanent IT
roles, but we want to keep these staff so we are guaranteeing them
the offer of another job with the group," said a Lloyds TSB
statement.