THE rocketing inflation in the UK saw Lloyds, the country’s biggest domestic bank, telling its staff members on Monday (13) that it would provide a one-off £1,000 to a vast majority of them to make their living a little better.
The offer has been made to around 64,000 of the bank’s employees, Reuters reported after citing a memo, adding that higher-placed officials such as executives and senior managers have been exempted.
Lloyds has been under pressure to help its low-paid staff members cope with the growing inflation, especially after the demonstration shown by union Unite outside its annual general meeting in Edinburgh last month. The protest was to highlight the challenges that the bank staff members are facing in terms of food, fuel and heating prices.
Inflation in Britain is predicted to go above 10 per cent later this year, Bank of England has cautioned.
According to a report in Nasdaq.com, Lloyd said in the memo that the one-time payments would be made in August and added that it would consider the economic picture while negotiating payment with the employees for 2023.
Reacting to Lloyd’s decision to give the bonus, Sharon Graham, the general secretary of Unite, said while the staff members would be happy to get the money, “it is still a long way to go to eradicate low pay in what is one of the economy’s most profitable sectors”.
(With agency inputs)
FILE PHOTO: A general view shows British Steel's Scunthorpe plant, in Scunthorpe, northern England, Britain, March 31, 2025. REUTERS/Dominic Lipinski
The FBU is planning to introduce new internal policies and wants the TUC to take action as well. (Representational image: iStock)
FBU chief raises concern over rise in racist online posts by union members
THE FIRE Brigades Union (FBU) and other trade unions are increasingly concerned about a rise in racist and bigoted online comments by their own members and officials, according to Steve Wright, the FBU’s new general secretary, speaking to the Guardian.
Wright said internal inquiries have revealed dozens of cases involving members using racist slurs or stereotypes, often aimed at asylum seekers.
He said similar issues were reported in other unions, prompting a joint campaign to counter false narratives around immigration and race promoted by far-right groups online.
“People with far-right views are becoming more brazen in what they do on social media, and I’ve witnessed it with my own union around disciplinary cases and the rhetoric of some of our own members,” Wright said to the newspaper.
He added, “Some of our members and sometimes our reps have openly made comments which are racist and bigoted. In my time in the fire service, that has gone up.”
The FBU is planning to introduce new internal policies and wants the TUC to take action as well. A formal statement addressing far-right narratives will be launched at the union’s annual conference in Blackpool next month.
Wright cited the influence of social media and figures like Donald Trump and Nigel Farage as factors contributing to these incidents. “It feels like an itch that we’ve got to scratch,” he said.
The FBU barred a former official last year for allegedly endorsing racist content on X, including posts from Britain First and Tommy Robinson.
Wright also warned that the union could strike if the government moves to cut frontline fire services.