Business roundup

This week's business roundup

Jobs go at US City firm

Schroder Salomon Smith Barney, the US securities firm, is shedding a number of staff from its European operation based in London. The group said rationalisation will affect under 100 staff. SSSB is one of an increasing number of City firms to cut jobs after the first-quarter downturn in stockmarkets.

www.salomonsmithbarney.com

3M posts cutbacks

The American industrial group 3M is slashing around 500 UK jobs as part of its strategy to cut 5,000 jobs worldwide. The company has 18 sites in the UK, including the head office in Bracknell, Berkshire. Jobs are likely to go through voluntary redundancies. The US conglomerate's products range from Post-It notes and Scotch tape to industrial adhesives and fibre-optic connectors. Paul Davies, 3M UK's HR director said affected employees would receive outplacement and financial services support.

www.3m.com

Merger banks on cuts

The future of thousands of jobs in Edinburgh hang in the balance after the Bank of Scotland revealed that it was considering a £28bn merger with Halifax, Britain's biggest mortgage lender. Unifi, the banking union, said that up to 10 per cent of the combined 55,000-strong workforce could go. The Bank of Scotland employs around 4,000 people in Edinburgh, while Halifax has nearly 5,000 staff, based in Leeds and Halifax.

www.unifi.org.uk