Unite Reaction to Banking Reform Agreement

September 23rd, 2009 LONDON - Commenting on the announcement today (Thursday) by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) of its new plan for the future of the business, Unite national secretary for the automotive sector, Dave Osborne said: "Earlier this year, this company and our union agreed a framework agreement intended to support JLR through this tough economic period. Our members said then that JLR could not be trusted to uphold that agreement.

August 18th, 2009 LONDON - Workers Uniting, the world's first international union, has launched an attack on the lies and misinformation being spread in the USA by opponents of President Obama's health insurance reform plan. In an online campaign, the union representing three million working people from every industrial sector in Britain, Ireland, the USA, Canada and the Caribbean, is demonstrating the malicious distortions being spread about the UK's National Health Service.

April 7th, 2009 LONDON - Unite, Britain's biggest union, has today issued a stark warning that it will not tolerate employers who attempt to use a credit crunch as an excuse to attack workers' pensions. The warning follows Aon's announcement that it intends to cut its contributions to workers' pensions by up to half.

April 6th, 2009 LONDON - Rob MacGregor, Unite national officer, said: "The news that 4,500 RBS staff in the UK are to lose their jobs is truly devastating. Unite is appalled that thousands of people, who form the backbone of the RBS operations, are to be made redundant.

April 1st, 2009 LONDON - Derek Simpson, Unite joint general secretary, said: "The announcement by Aviva to cut 1,100 staff will cause alarm across the insurance industry. Today we see a scenario where a company that is continuing to deliver positive results is slashing the staff that have enabled them to weather the current financial storm.

March 30th, 2009 LONDON - New research will be launched in the House of Commons on Tuesday 31st March which sets out the necessity for radical reform for the financial services industry. The report by the Financial Exclusion Centre has been commissioned by Unite the union.

March 30th, 2009 LONDON - A new report launched today (Tuesday 31st March) by The Financial Inclusion Centre has set out the need for radical reform of the financial services industry and put forward proposals for that reform. The report entitled: 'Reforming the Financial System' was commissioned by Unite the union in order to explore how the finance world needs to be reformed so that it meets the needs of society and prevent another similar crisis from occurring.

March 24th, 2009 LONDON - Derek Simpson, Unite Joint General Secretary, said: "To slash 2,900 jobs demonstrates the insincerity of the claim by HSBC to be 'the world's local bank'. This decision will ravage a number of local communities as sites are closed and other work is sent abroad.

March 17th, 2009 LONDON - Rob MacGregor, Unite national officer, said: "Another review with more rhetoric than substance will do nothing to reassure consumers or staff in the financial services industry. Action is well over-due by those who oversee the UK's financial services sector in order to overhaul the flawed sector and bring back trust.

March 12th, 2009 LONDON - Unite, the UK's biggest civil air transport union, welcomes the announcement today (Friday) from the High Court that the challenge to the expansion of Stansted airport has been suspended. Steve Turner, Unite National Officer, said: "We are delighted at this decision today and hope we can now move on and develop an expansion programme at Stansted airport.

July 16th, 2009 Lloyds Banking Group cutting 1,200 more jobsLONDON — Lloyds Banking Group announced Thursday it would cut another 1,200 jobs to reduce costs and rationalize operations after the government-backed merger of Lloyds TSB and Halifax/Bank of Scotland. Lloyds, whose biggest shareholder is the British government, said 650 permanent jobs would go by the first quarter of next year, 180 staff would move to new positions and 370 agency and contract staff would be cut in its group operations and insurance divisions.

September 9th, 2009 AMA letter a shot in the arm for Obama's effortsCHICAGO — The American Medical Association has posted a letter on its Web site, urging President Barack Obama and Congress to reach an agreement on health reform. The letter is signed by AMA President J.

August 23rd, 2009 McCain: Obama must drop health care public optionWASHINGTON — Sen. John McCain says President Barack Obama will have to drop proposals for a government-run health insurance option if he hopes to reach congressional agreement on health-care reform.

April 30th, 2009 LAHORE - After banning NGO's , cable TV and music shops in the region, the Swat chapter of the Taliban has now warned of carrying out 'reform' of journalism and the banking system in the Valley. Taliban's Swat chapter spokesperson Muslim Khan said the Taliban's next target would be the banking system "where un-Islamic affairs are being carried out." Khan warned media persons in the valley saying they would be punished according to the sharia for presenting a wrong picture of the outfit infront of the world.

June 30th, 2009 Lloyds Banking Group cutting 1,750 more jobsLONDON — Lloyds Banking Group PLC said Tuesday it expects to cut 1,750 jobs in its group operations and wholesale divisions over the next three years as it consolidates the merger of Lloyds TSB and Halifax/Bank of Scotland. The partly nationalized bank said 2,100 posts would be cut, but that would be partly offset by creating 350 new roles in the two divisions.

June 30th, 2009 Lloyds Banking Group cutting 1,800 more jobsLONDON — Lloyds Banking Group PLC said Tuesday that it expects to cut nearly 1,800 jobs in its group operations and wholesale divisions over the next three years as it consolidates the merger of Lloyds TSB and Halifax/Bank of Scotland. The partly nationalized bank said 2,100 posts would be affected, but that would be partly offset by creating 350 new roles in the two divisions.

July 29th, 2009 ABU DHABI - The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) Wednesday signed a key partnership agreement with Britain's ifs School of Finance to deliver diploma courses in banking and finance for its employees, WAM news agency reported. The partnership with the ifs School of Finance, one of the world's leading providers of professional banking and financial services qualifications, will enable NBAD's employees to benefit from an excellent foundation in banking and from which to progress their careers, said Michael Tomalin, the chief executive of the UAE bank.

May 15th, 2009 KUALA LUMPUR - Temples in Malaysia should be used to unite the Malay Indian community, the Tamil Nesan quoted Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC) secretary-general Dr. S. Subramaniam, as saying.

September 17th, 2009 Union returning to AFL-CIOPITTSBURGH — One of the unions that left the AFL-CIO in a bitter dispute that split the labor movement four years ago is coming back to the labor federation. The union of hotel, restaurant and clothing workers known as UNITE HERE is bringing its 265,000 members back a day after Richard Trumka became the newest AFL-CIO president.

February 27th, 2009 LONDON - Lloyds Banking Group Friday reported 2008 losses of 9.9 billion pounds ($14 billion) following its growth into a 'superbank' through the emergency takeover of Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) last September. Lloyds core division made a pre-tax profit of 807 million pounds in 2008, but HBOS, Britain's biggest mortgage lender, had suffered losses of 9.9 billion pounds, the banking group said.