Intercontinental Bank Explains Rationalisation

Mahmoud Lai Alabi, managing director, Intercontinental Bank Plc has said the need to perfect its transformation project and preserve value for shareholders informed the recent staff rationalisation in which 1,346 staff of the bank were laid off.
In his reaction to the massive layoffs in banks and the outcry by the organised labour, he disclosed in a statement that the bank’s action was specific to Intercontinental Bank Plc not generally a response to a directive from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as being speculated in some quarters.
Alabi explained that “Though there was a letter specifically written by the banking supervision department of the CBN in response to the financial report submitted by the bank and was not sent to any other bank as been misrepresented by some people. The letter only advised the bank on what to do on the way forward and not a directive from the CBN to all banks.
The advice from the banking supervision department, which does not necessarily require the approval of the CBN management, however, coincided with our plans to cut cost under our new Project Transformation.”
He said while the exercise was being executed, the various unions in the bank as well as other stakeholders were engaged and carried along in order to save the bank for future generations, given the financial position of the institution.
“The staff were all paid their 13th month salaries, December salaries, salary in lieu of disengagement and also severance packages. All these were done to give the disengagement exercise a human face,” he said.
Alabi assured that as the bank’s financials improve, some of the disengaged staff would be recalled.
“As a matter of fact, we have advised all the affected staff to leave their forwarding addresses with the Human Resources Department for possible recall as the need arises.
“I must also add that both management and staff of Intercontinental Bank have made sacrifices on all generous and outrageous bonuses, all of which have since been suspended,” he said.
He also assured that going forward; none of the core staff of the bank would be disengaged
However, he said that the non-core staff would be repositioned and properly aligned into the bank's outsourcing workforce without any reduction in their benefits.