More HR job losses are likely after a raft of top employers announced plans to cut staff.
IT giant Microsoft said it would shed 5,000 jobs worldwide after disappointing results. The firm said some jobs would be lost in HR, although it is unclear whether they will be UK-based employees.
Royal Bank of Scotland admitted job losses were inevitable as it looked to cut costs as a result of record losses. As part of a new bail-out, the government increased its share in the bank to nearly 70% last week. However, RBS refused to comment on the number of likely job losses, or which departments would be affected.
HR staff at Sainsbury’s will fear for their future after announcing up to 300 redundancies at its head office to cut costs. A spokesman said the firm was conducting a consultation process and could not say if HR jobs would be lost. However, the supermarket will be opening stores throughout the year and could employ 4,000 more people in the process, a spokesman said.
Civil engineer Arup also revealed plans to cut 400 staff in the UK – about 8% of its workforce – and South West Trains will axe roughly 480 managerial and admin roles.
