Ulster Bank to lay off 800 staff - 250 of whom are based in Northern Ireland

​The Ulster Bank is to lay off some 800 staff across the island of Ireland - 250 of whom are based in Northern Ireland.
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In 2021 Ulster Bank’s parent company NatWest announced plans to withdraw from the Republic of Ireland and by last month it had shut its entire southern branch network.

However, Ulster Bank sites in Northern Ireland are not affected. It is understood that the 250 jobs at risk in NI are roles which previously serviced business in the south.

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Gareth Murphy, head of industrial relations and campaigns with the Financial Services Union (FSU), said Ulster Bank had announced a further 813 redundancies as part of an overall withdrawal process from the Republic of Ireland.

The Ulster Bank has announced plans to lay off 250 staff in Northern Ireland.The Ulster Bank has announced plans to lay off 250 staff in Northern Ireland.
The Ulster Bank has announced plans to lay off 250 staff in Northern Ireland.

Over 250 of these staff are based in Northern Ireland with the remainder based in the Republic of Ireland.

Mr Murphy said: “Today is a sad and difficult day for all Ulster Bank staff and their families who have given so much to the bank and its customers over many years.

“As a union, throughout this difficult process we have managed to secure improved redundancy terms and protected jobs with staff transferring to other banks. We have also managed to secure up to 100 jobs with staff transferring to new roles within NatWest.”

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He added that the rise of remote working means there is “a clear onus” on NatWest to fully explore any opportunity to redeploy NI staff across its entire GB network.

Ulster Bank chief executive Jane Howard said: “As we move into the later phases of our withdrawal, we announced earlier today another redundancy programme for our colleagues.

“This programme will see colleagues leave the bank as their work ceases or significantly diminishes over the course of 2023 and 2024, and we expect there will be no further bank-wide redundancy programmes this year.

“Each redundancy programme announcement is a significant moment for our bank, with a personal impact for our colleagues and I reiterate my ongoing and sincere gratitude to colleagues for the dedication they have shown and for the important work and support that they continue to provide to our customers and each other.”