Life company Legal & General (L&G) will close its Kingswood office in 2018.
In August 2015, New Model Adviser® revealed L&G was considering closing the site with the possible loss of 250 jobs.
A lengthy dispute between the company and the Unite union followed. Earlier this month, L&G staff earlier voted to take ‘action short of a strike’ in order to save the office.
L&G has confirmed the site will close by summer 2018. The closure will begin later this year, with some staff moving as soon as spring.
All 1,400 roles will be transferred to its Hove and Cardiff offices, and relocation and travel packages will be made available as a result of a ‘successful’ consultation with the Unite union.
Severance terms have also been agreed for those staff unable to move or be redeployed.
L&G has insisted once again that customer service will not be affected, despite a report from Unite earlier this week suggesting that Kingswood’s closure would blow a £21 million hole in the local economy.
Simon Burke, group commercial director at L&G, said the company needed to close Kingswood in part because of its high rent and running costs.
‘The Kingswood building, for all its history and strengths, is our least adaptable building to changing business demands, and has high rent and running costs,’ he said.
‘To keep offering value for money products to our customers, we need our employees working at fewer and the right locations, so we can drive costs down, and improve customer service.’
Source: New Model Adviser