Geneva : Tens of thousands of jobs could disappear in Switzerland following UBS’s emergency takeover of its troubled rival Credit Suisse, observers warned Tuesday, as unions demanded a rescue package for banking staff.
The news that Switzerland’s biggest bank will, under pressure from Swiss authorities, swallow up the second-largest has sent shockwaves through the wealthy Alpine nation, renowned for its banks and financial sector.
“Directly or indirectly, tens of thousands of jobs are potentially threatened,” the Swiss Trade Union Federation (SGB) warned in a statement Tuesday.
“Many jobs are at risk,” the Swiss Bank Employees Association (SBPV) said, warning that the uncertainty facing Credit Suisse employees was “extremely stressful.”
The $3.25-billion takeover announced late Sunday was mediated by the Swiss authorities to help prevent economic turmoil spreading throughout the country and beyond after crisis-hit Credit Suisse saw its share price implode last week amid market panic following the collapse of two US banks.
The two Swiss banking giants currently count around 120,000 staff between them globally, with some 37,000 of those in Switzerland.
But once the mega-merger is completed, there is little doubt many of those jobs will become redundant.
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