Barclays Announces 132 Channel Island Job Losses

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

09 September 2002

Barclays Bank announced last week that some 132 Channel Island jobs will be lost over the next six to nine months as a result of restructuring of its offshore business.

The Guernsey Press and Star reported on Thursday that more than 30 of these positions are likely to be lost in Guernsey, although Barclays' island director, Stephen Jones refused to confirm this figure.

Speaking to the locally-based newspaper, he revealed that: 'The jobs that will go were not involved in handling Guernsey business,' and explained: 'We are talking about rationalisation. The result of these changes gives Barclays Guernsey the opportunity to focus even more strongly on providing local banking facilities and specialist services to international business and finance companies in the island.'

Mr Jones added that: 'This is no reflection on the abilities of the staff here or in Jersey. It was a corporate decision to reorganise how and where, and staffing.'

'Where we do the same non-island specific work in all three islands it is logical to move it from one island to a more efficient island, and we have chosen the Isle of Man for a range of reasons.'

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