SASBO TO TAKE STANDARD BANK TO LABOUR COURT
Sasbo the Finance Union, representing in excess of 67 000 employees in the Finance Sector of which 15 400 are employed in Standard Bank alone, has today launched papers with the Labour Court to obtain an urgent interdict against Standard Bank.
The bank plans to retrench 1200 permanent employees in South Africa plus a further 600 temporary staff in an attempt to reduce its operating costs.
"Sasbo continues to maintain that the bank's action is simply an attempt to boost its short term profits at the expense of long serving loyal employees. We want the bank to stop this process and continue engaging Sasbo to meaningfully explore all alternatives in an attempt to avoid these retrenchments", says Eugene Ebersohn, Assistant General Secretary at Sasbo.
"We believe there are various ways to curb their operating expenses, including, but not limited to, placing a restriction on all Executive increases and Bonus payments in March next year. This in itself will go extremely far to reducing costs. We cannot accept that all these positions have to be sacrificed so as to allow the bank to generate short term profits and increase shareholder value".
"The bank is hell-bent on proceeding with the retrenchments, but we believe there are other options available. Meaningful and genuine joint consensus seeking discussions are needed. This exercise is not about saving the bank. It is a strong, financially sound entity, providing solid returns for its shareholders. Given that they want to proceed, irrespective of the views of Sasbo, the only union representing employees in the bank, we are left with no option but to seek recourse through our legal system. This ill-advised action on the part of Standard Bank is having an extremely negative impact on the lives of employees and all that Standard Bank is interested in is getting this matter behind them by laying off staff as quickly as possible. Retrenchments should be the very last resort" says Eugene Ebersohn.
Statement issued by Eugene Ebersohn, Assistant General Secretary at Sasbo, November 8 2010
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