UCO faces 40% surplus staff after core rollout

Kolkata-based UCO Bank expects 40 per cent of its staff to be rendered surplus once all its branches are automated and networked with a core banking solution (CBS).

Nearly 10,000 staff members would become workless in the next two to three years as the roll-out of CBS gets completed.

To tackle the emerging situation, the bank has made a beginning for re-deployment of the "excess" workforce. The banks has about 25,000 employees.

The staff that would become surplus would go through re-orientations for undertaking sales and marketing responsibilities, which are key to success of any universal bank in a competitive market.

The bank took the first steps at tackling the issue of surplus staff with the launch of a dedicated sales force for small enterprises and businesses in Bangalore. It plans to replicate this move in the rest of the country over a period.

This is part of the bank's redeployment policy, said N Sivaguru, a deputy general manager at UCO Bank. The sales team with six officers will exclusively cater to the requirements of petty traders and small enterprises.

The major focus of the sales force will be on financing traders, and small players in real estate. The team will also mobilise current accounts and sell insurance and MF products to businessmen.