Bank Przemyslowo-Handlowy and union sign agreement on merger lay-offs

The Bank Przemyslowo-Handlowy (BPH) board of management has signed an agreement with trade unions on the rules for group layoffs of up to 1,200 employess by the end of this year. The layoffs will result from the expected merger of the Krakow-based bank with Warsaw-based Powszechny Bank Kredytowy (PBK), the outcome of the merger between their strategic investors German Bayerische Hypo Vereinsbank (88% stake in BPH) and Bank Austria (53% stake in PBK), respectively. The newly formed entity will become the third biggest Polish bank, with approximately 2 million customers and 600 outlets throughout the country, employing 14,000 people. Due to the planned centralization of settlement-documents' processing, creation of cash centers, changes in branch office-hours and in organizational structure, BPH decided to lay off one-fifth of its staff. According to the agreement with the unions, some of those employees will get new jobs in the bank's new branches or in companies taking over some of its activity. The others will get severance pay and allowances of zl.1,500 to cover the cost of re-training them to find new jobs. (Prawo i Gospodarka, p.9) M.S.-C.