UK banks still lending irresponsibly

Irresponsible lending

According to UK trade union Unite, high streets banks in Britain have learned nothing from the economic crisis and continue to set unachievable goals, forcing staff to lend irresponsibly.

Unite, the UK's largest union, has warned that sales targets within the financial services sector have not changed, regardless of the fact that the UK economy has been on the brink of collapse.

Despite the part-nationalisation of some of the UK's biggest banks, Unite says that banking staff are continuing to sell products to people who don't need them and cannot afford them. The move, an effort to meet ridiculous targets, suggests irresponsible lending and unnecessary risk-taking - something the banking sector is supposed to be cracking down on.

Link to pay

Unite are concerned that there is currently a too greater link between sales targets and bankers' pay, which only encourages staffers to promote financially unfeasible products. As such, the union recommends the financial services sector needs to replace this model with one more focused on high standards of customer service, promoting fair pay to all.

The Unite report specifically highlights Lloyds Banking Group - now 43 percent owned by the UK government - as struggling to meet unrealistic sales targets which have not changed since before the crisis hit.

According to Unite's national officer Rob Macgregor, "this bank, which is part owned by the taxpayer, should be providing excellent service to customers and staff should being paid fairly for doing so.

"Instead," he warns, "we have a sales culture which encourages staff to sell customers products that they do not want or need."

Call for action

To counteract their concerns, the trade union are calling for Lloyds to replace the bonus culture with a pay system which gives staff fair pay, without relying on the sale of risky products. The move by Unite supports last month's campaign launch by consumer lobby group Which?, which says people in Britain are frustrated at the poor level of services at banks and deserve better financial institutions.

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