UNITE called for urgent talks with HSBC today after the banking giant confirmed plans to cut thousands of jobs worldwide, including in Britain.

Employee numbers will drop from 235,000 to about 200,000 jobs worldwide over the next three years.

HSBC’s finance chief Ewen Stevenson said there will be “meaningful” cuts in Britain, where the bank employs about 40,000 people.

HSBC is blaming the cuts on a drop in profits: it recorded a 33 per cent fall to £10.2 billion in pre-tax profits in 2019.

Unite national officer for finance Dominic Hook, who represents nearly 20,000 HSBC staff in call centres and offices, has demanded clarity on the job losses.

He said: “Despite HSBC still making billions of dollars of profit, once again hard-working and dedicated staff have woken up to the news that their job could be at risk.

“Unite is seeking urgent discussions with senior management to understand the serious impact of this announcement and what it will mean for our members in the UK.

“Banks are always going on about their human face in their marketing campaigns, but it is always the front-line staff that bear the brunt of the cost-cutting, salami-slicing plans. We need to draw a line in the sand over this business model.”