- Many more thousands will lose their jobs under the restructuring plans ordered by Brussels
- There are 19% less savings bank branches than in 2008
- 5000 employees from Bankia are set to lose their jobs
In a bid to clean up their balance sheets, and under the orders of the European Commission, the Spanish banking sector has had to make some huge changes in the way it functions and carry out a total reform and restructure in order to satisfy the higher ups in Brussels.
Since 2008, this has involved 23,450 savings banks employees losing their jobs so that the financial institutions can reduce their personnel and save money.
A total of 4.587 branches have also been closed in processes involving absorption by larger banks and other restructuring measures.
In 2008, savings banks in Spain reached a maximum of 25,051 branches throughout the country, and in the last four years this number has been depleted by 19%, leaving a total of 19,330 offices.
The number of people employed by the savings banks has also been reduced by 18.3%, from 135,415 employees in 2008 to 104,504 at present.
With more mergers and restructuring plans on the way, this figure will certainly decline next year. Employees of Bankia, Novagalicia Banco, Catalunya Bank, BMN, Liberbank, Banco Ceiss and Caja 3 are most likely fearful for their jobs at the moment.
As part of the plan to rescue these entities, Brussels has offered a cash injection of 32.5 billion euro to the first three banks and has already boosted the four latter entities by almost 2 billion euro. In exchange it has asked for a reduction of 60% and 30% of their staff.
Bankia has announced that a possible 5,000 employees will lose their jobs and it will have to close 1,100 branches, whilst Novagalicia is set to close 454 branches and lay off 2,500 of its personnel.
As a result of these measures, trade unions UGT and CCOO called for mass protests in all the capitals of provinces on Christmas Eve in protest against the labour reforms in the country’s nationalised banks, which form part of the restructuring of the whole of the financial system.
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