For employees of Veneto Bank and Popular Bank of Vicenza thousands of redundancies are arriving. Corriere della Sera writes today, explaining that the situation will probably turn out to be more serious than expected: no longer just voluntary exits e early retirementsbut also real layoffs. It would go in this direction the restructuring and merger plan, these days under consideration in Brussels and founded on a heavy cost cutting, starting with those related to personnel.
In all, the employees of the two banks are over 11 thousand: 5.400 employed by Popolare di Vicenza and 6.200 by Veneto Banca. In part, the weight of unforgiving numbers will fall on them: after the 3,5 billion paid by the Atlante Fund, the ECB has quantified the capital shortfall of the two institutions at 6,4 billion.
The hole will be covered with burden sharing (which implies the forced conversion of subordinated bonds), asset sales e state aid. But the European Antitrust has indicated precise parameters of cost/revenue ratios to minimize the "precautionary recapitalization" borne by taxpayers, therefore Veneto Banca and Popolare di Vicenza will be forced to save as much as possible, starting right from the redundancies.
There are still no precise indications on the number of people destined to lose their jobs. The sale of Bim and the foreign subsidiaries of Veneto Banca alone would make it possible to reduce the workforce by around a thousand units. But that won't be enough. The first to be affected by the cuts will be the managers (about 250 in all), then it's up to ai banking. Meanwhile, i sindacati they promise to fight in the event of layoffs.
In any case, could intervene the Income support fund of bankers, a parachute designed specifically to help employees of credit institutions in crisis.
