Ecobank Nigeria has sacked over 1,040 of its employees as the current economic downturn in the country continues to take a toll.
The Rainbow had reported early this month of massive retrenchment going on in the banking industry, in which First Bank, FCMB, Diamond Bank and Ecobank were cited as examples of those which had undertaken the retrenchment process.
Diamond Bank Plc sacked over 200 members of its workforce, while FBN Holdings, the parent company of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, recently said it would prune the number of its employees by 1,000. Diamond Bank had earlier suspended 630 of its personnel in March and latter made official announcement of the sacking odf 200.
Industry sources said that some other banks like Guaranty Trust Bank had also discreetly weeded off some of its staff in response to the tough operating environment.
Ecobank was said to have sacked both full time and contract workers.
Ecobank Nigeria is a member of the Ecobank Group, which is present in 36 African countries. The Group employs nearly 19,000 people from 40 different countries in over 1,200 branches and offices.
ETI had posted over N40bn decline in its profit for the 2015 financial year owing to high impairment charges.
Very reliable sources at the bank said that it had initially planned to sack over 1,400, workers but was later reduced to “a little above 1,000.”
Ecobank spokespersons declined to comment on the number of workers who were disengaged.
However, the lender said in a statement that it had converted over 200 outsourced personnel to permanent employees as part of its drive to attract and reward talent, while also repositioning for improved efficiency.
In line with the recognition of excellence, the bank also said it had recently implemented a merit-based pay increase for the top performers across all cadres.
The Managing Director, Ecobank, Mr. Charles Kie, was quoted as saying that converting qualified outsourced staff to permanent workers was in line with the bank’s commitment to developing and growing talent by nurturing its people along their career paths and giving them access to higher responsibilities.
He said the bank was resolute that recognising and rewarding excellence would drive its goal of achieving exceptional performance in the industry.
Kie said, “The bank, in its renewed drive for optimal performance, has in addition realigned certain roles bank wide to ensure improved efficiency. This necessitates the exits of some staff who were adequately compensated.
“This is in furtherance of a market repositioning exercise designed to strengthen the bank’s business across all markets where it operates.”
He emphasised that the ETI was on a trajectory to achieve leadership and that the Nigerian subsidiary remained one of Ecobank Transnational Incorporated’s major affiliates as well as one of the country’s systemically important financial institutions.
Kie explained, “Our focus is to improve the quality of service to our customers as well as our operational efficiency.
“We understand that people are our key assets; so, we have emphasised the need to reward our best performers, continue to re-invigorate our people, while also opening up new opportunities for talented and committed people to join us as permanent employees. At the same time, based on our repositioning plan, we had to disengage some staff, while ensuring that, in line with industry standards, they are treated fairly.”
