ECONOMY

Alpha Bank launches voluntary redundancy program [Update]

Alpha Bank, Greece’s fourth biggest lender, opened a voluntary redundancy offer on Monday with a view to cutting 15 percent of its workforce to cut costs under a restructuring plan approved by the EU Commission, an official at the bank said on Monday.

All four of Greece’s top banks have been restructuring but Alpha’s bigger rivals National Bank, Piraeus and Eurobank completed similar job cutting schemes last year.

“The bank launched a voluntary separation scheme on Monday to rationalize staff numbers after the absorption of Emporiki Bank. The scheme is open to all staff and expires on Sept. 30,” the official at Alpha bank said, declining to be named.

Alpha Bank aims to cut about 15 to 20 percent of its workforce of about 10,000, the official said.

Piraeus shed about 12 percent of its workforce via a voluntary redundancy scheme in September 2013, while more than 10 percent of Eurobank’s staff departed through a voluntary scheme in November last year.

In December, more than 2,000 people signed up for a voluntary redundancy scheme at Greece’s biggest lender, National Bank, which aimed at shedding about 15 percent of its workforce to cut costs. [Reuters]

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