IT workers will be hit by 1,100 job cuts to be made by
insurance company Norwich Union Life, owned by Aviva.
Most of the job cuts are in business change and IT, with the
rest spread across other areas of the company, said the UK's
largest insurer. A total of 590 contract positions will also be
cut.
But natural turnover and redeployment mean the number of
permanent employees who will leave the company is estimated to be
about 800, said Aviva.
Mark Hodges - CEO at Norwich Union Life, which is the Aviva
business affected - said the company has made progress in improving
its operational efficiency and is also nearing completion on a
series of major change projects.
"Unfortunately, this means that a reduction in the number of
roles in the business is inevitable," he said.
Aviva is the UK's largest insurance company. Derek Simpson,
joint general secretary of the Unite trade union, said the
announcement will cause alarm across the insurance industry.
"Today we see a scenario where a company that is continuing to
deliver positive results is slashing the staff who have enabled
them to weather the current financial storm, " he said.
Reinsurance
firm,
Swiss RE today said it will reduce its workforce by 10% over
the next year as it consolidates its IT and business-support
services. It plans to move its IT support services into the larger
Swiss RE offices, which will offer support to smaller offices.
In February insurance firm
RSA said that it was cutting 1,200 jobs in the UK, including IT
roles.