Lloyds TSB defends decision to continue paying staff bonuses

Lloyds TSB has denied there is anything wrong with continuing to pay staff bonuses despite promises by Gordon Brown to crack down on bankers’ pay.

Yesterday, Eric Daniels, chief executive of Lloyds TSB, told staff they had “done a terrific job” this year and there was “no reason why [they] shouldn’t” receive their bonuses.

He said there were “very, very few restrictions” being placed on the bank’s practices regarding lending or staff pay, adding Lloyds TSB’s situation was “different” to that of HBOS and Royal Bank of Scotland.

A spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB told Personnel Today that it was right to reward staff who had done their job well.

“We have a bonus framework in place, and have seen no reason why staff shouldn’t receive bonuses,” she said. “If a member of staff hasn’t performed to the level expected of them, they will not benefit.”

“We have asked executive directors to take part or all of their bonus in shares, but all employees below that level can receive their full bonus.”

Lloyds has agreed to accept £5.5bn of taxpayers’ money in return for shares as part of the government’s £37bn bank bail-out.

Last week, industry figures claimed city HR chiefs are partly to blame for the UK’s banking crisis for failing to curb irresponsible behaviour.