Santander in talks with more than 200 Portuguese employees affected by job cuts – source

MADRID, September 20 (Reuters) – Spain’s Santander (SAN.MC) is in negotiations with around 210 employees in Portugal as part of a larger cost-cutting plan that affects 11% of its workforce there, said a source familiar with the matter. .

Struck by the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, ultra-low interest rates in the euro area and a shift from customers to online banking, European lenders have sought to control the additional costs. Read more

According to a June internal memo seen by Reuters, the bank offers early retirement to employees over 55 and compensation for time spent in service.

The source said about 475 employees out of a total of 685 affected by the cost-cutting plan had agreed to the bank’s terms, adding that the bank was now in negotiations with the others.

On Monday, Santander, responding to a request for comment, said its goal was to reach an agreement with staff regarding departures to Portugal, where it had 6,049 employees at the end of June.

In December last year, the banking giant struck a deal with unions to lay off 3,572 employees in Spain as part of a cost-cutting plan, or around 12% of its workforce in its home market.

Report by Jesús Aguado; Editing by Pravin Char

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