According to anonymous sources on Thursday, Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LYG.US) plans to place approximately 3,000 employees - those ranking in the bottom 5% performance tier - on a "layoff risk list," potentially facing termination. The report indicates that this British bank intends to comprehensively reform its performance management system for 63,000 employees.
For the poorest-performing employees, the bank will clearly communicate: improvements in work performance are required, otherwise they will face dismissal. A spokesperson for Lloyds Banking Group issued a statement saying the group is in a "business transformation" phase and is "committed to building a high-performance culture."
The spokesperson stated: "Consistent with industry-wide practices, we have been exploring various ways to help employees achieve their best work performance. We understand that change may bring discomfort, but we are excited about future opportunities - these opportunities will drive us to achieve our growth goals and provide excellent service experiences for our customers."
The report also mentioned that this new performance management system was discussed and approved at a recent group executive committee meeting. Currently, CEO Charlie Nunn is advancing the final phase of his cost reduction and revenue diversification plan, with this performance reform being an important initiative within this context.
The report further noted that during this meeting, Sharon Doherty, the executive responsible for personnel and workplace affairs at Lloyds Banking Group, stated that the bank needs to increase the turnover rate of bottom-performing employees. Doherty further pointed out that high-performance companies typically conduct regular assessments of their bottom 5% employees, with approximately half of these employees ultimately leaving - Lloyds Banking Group plans to emulate this practice.
The analysis suggests that Lloyds Banking Group is currently facing an issue of excessively low employee turnover. Due to current economic uncertainty, employees generally tend to retain their existing positions and are reluctant to voluntarily resign. Data shows that the bank's current annual employee turnover rate is only around 5%, while the historical average level is close to 15%.
In January this year, Lloyds Banking Group announced that to accommodate the trend of customers transitioning to digital banking services, it would close 136 physical branches in the region, but at that time promised there would be no layoffs as a result.