LAKEWOOD, Colo.—At a time when many credit unions are going through mergers, two big banks have announced post-merger job reductions.
In Colorado, PNC Bank plans to lay off 777 workers at its regional headquarters in Lakewood following its acquisition of FirstBank,.
The job cuts were disclosed in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act filing submitted last to the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment and reported by the Denver Post. The reductions follow PNC’s $4.1 billion purchase of FirstBank, announced in September and completed Jan. 5.
“As part of that acquisition, PNC has begun the process of consolidating its operations into a single organization,” Justin McKim, HR operations service manager at PNC, said in the filing, according to The Denver Post.
Cuts Begin June 30
McKim said the layoffs are permanent and are expected to begin June 30. Affected employees will not be offered bumping rights to transfer into other roles within the company.
The Post report said PNC did not specify which positions will be eliminated. However, FirstBank had invested heavily in building an in-house technology team, and those roles may be among the most affected, the report said. State officials have requested additional details on the specific positions included in the layoffs, the Post reported.
FirstBank employed more than 1,000 people at its headquarters at 12345 W. Colfax Ave., making it one of Lakewood’s largest employers, according to Livability data cited by The Denver Post. Despite the layoffs, the facility will remain open, with other employees continuing to work at the location, the Post stated.
No Effect on Branches
The analysis further stated the layoffs do not appear to impact PNC’s roughly 120 retail branches across Colorado, suggesting the company is focusing on consolidating back-office functions while maintaining front-line operations, the report said.
Job Cuts in Michigan
Separately, in Michigan, just three months after buying Comerica, Fifth Third Bank is cutting more than 500 jobs.
The cuts are coming to the former Comerica Great Lakes campus in Farmington Hills between July and November.
Fifth Third bought Comerica in February for $13 billion.
The bank said it plans to keep the Farmington Hills campus open and is working to rebrand all Comerica locations later this year.
