A cheque processing company is closing seven sites across the UK with the loss of 600 jobs, ahead of the nationwide introduction of new cheque imaging technology.
Intelligent Processing Solutions Ltd (iPSL), which processes 5m cheques a day, said it plans to slash its operations to two sites in Northampton and Milton Keynes. This will reduce its workforce to just over 700 people, according to the Unite union, which described the job losses as “tragic”.
The company blamed the introduction of the image clearing system, planned for October 2017, for the planned cuts, saying would have a “huge impact” on the cheque clearing process. iPSL handles 80% of all cheques in the UK year, with a value of £700bn.
Cheque imaging will save customers a trip to their bank by allowing them to take a photograph of a cheque and send it via their smartphones, speeding up the process. Barclays and Lloyds have trialled the new technology but progress has been slow.
“Its introduction will remove the requirement for remote data capture and processing, therefore reducing site requirements and a subsequent reduction in staffing numbers,” iPSL said.
It said that the plans were subject to change and still had to be signed off by its clients and the board. Staff were informed of the cuts on Tuesday.
Last year, more than half a billion cheques were written in Britain, down 13% from the year before, but 55% of businesses still write cheques, according to Payments UK, which represents the industry. That compares with more than 4bn cheques a year at the peak in 1990.
Unite says iPSL’s plans are to close sites at Bootle, Bradford, Copley, Edinburgh, Chelmsford, Clydebank and Camberley in 2018.
Dominic Hook, Unite’s national officer, said: “This consolidation strategy is deeply disappointing and the impact will be felt widely.
“The tide of digitalisation across the financial services brings with it huge challenges as organisations have to adapt the way they work. The changing face of cheque processing, with new digital imaging, has brought considerable difficulties for this industry. Unite wants iPSL to make the necessary investment through new technology to secure as many jobs as is possible.”
Unite has pressed the company to provide training and outplacement support to staff.
The use of cheques has been declining for years. But after the payments industry announced plans to phase out cheques by October 2018, there was a backlash from consumers and the government intervened. It said cheques would only be phased out if adequate alternatives were in place.
The Treasury accepted that cheques remain popular, especially with older people, tradespeople, small businesses and charities, and for family gifts.
The industry body expects the annual rate of decline in cheque volumes to slow as their use becomes more concentrated among those who have a strong preference for paying by cheque.
