TD Bank cutting ‘hundreds’ of workers in bid to trim costs: source

TORONTO – Toronto-Dominion Bank is eliminating some jobs and changing others as part of a company-wide review to trim costs amid a challenging operating environment.

The bank would not say how many people will be affected by the review, which began in the first quarter with a focus on the lender’s U.S. operations.

A TD spokeswoman said in a email statement Monday that the review now is focused on Canadian operations.

The statement was issued in response to a report by Reuters saying TD employees had been informed of job cuts last week. One of two unidentified sources quoted by the news agency said several hundred employees were being laid off.

The review, which has the lender revising its executive and corporate management structure, is expected to be completed by the end of 2015.

“As a result of the review, some roles are changing and some are being impacted,” the bank said in an email Monday. “For those impacted colleagues, we are focused on treating them fairly and with respect through this process.”

TD had, on average, more than 80,000 full-time equivalent staff last year, according to the bank’s annual report for 2014.

Streamlining

Chief executive Bharat Masrani told analysts in February that the bank is “streamlining” its executive and corporate management structures, digitizing some of its processes and cutting back on discretionary spending.

“This is simply a reality of today’s slower-growth world,” Masrani said at the time.

Cost management has been top of mind for Canadian banks amid slowing loan growth, weak oil prices and rock-bottom interest rates.

‘It probably has a lot to do with the outlook for much weaker loan growth.’

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“Sounds like all the banks are starting to sharpen their pencils on expenses,” said Edward Jones analyst Jim Shanahan. “It probably has a lot to do with the outlook for much weaker loan growth and continued downward pressure on net interest margins.”

Earlier this month, Montreal-based National Bank (TSX:NA) announced it was axing “several hundred” positions as part of a restructuring plan due to the economic slowdown.

Shanahan says cost-cutting measures are likely to be a dominant theme when the banks report their fourth-quarter results in December.

“This is probably the first of many similar announcements,” he said.