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Saturday, March 18, 2000 Time runs out for bank's Y2K staff ALEX LO

Dozens of information-technology workers in Standard Chartered Bank's Y2K section fear being made redundant after 18 of them were told they might lose their jobs as early as next month, a source said yesterday.

At a meeting yesterday, 18 staff from the section were told efforts would be made to redeploy them or help them find outside jobs but if these failed, they would be made redundant next month, the source said.

The Y2K group works in areas such as data-processing, systems testing, information-technology strategies and public relations. They are all full-time staff.

The source said dozens more had been assigned to short-term projects lasting about two months but they also faced being laid-off after the projects ended.

"The plan is to avoid the impression of mass sacking," the source said, adding that Y2K specialists on temporary contracts had already left.

"When the Y2K division first started, no regular staff wanted to join because they all knew there was no future in the job. But management was saying how important the job would be and made promises about keeping everyone."

Most of the 18 workers have taken out preferential mortgages from the bank, which means they will have to repay amounts ranging from tens of thousands of dollars to more than $1 million.

Standard Chartered said while redeployment of Y2K workers was continuing, there was no plan to sack anyone.

"We have no plan to lay off anyone as of now. We are not the only one who is redeploying our Y2K staff. Every company will be doing that," a spokeswoman said. http://www.scmp.com/News/HongKong/Article/FullText_asp_ArticleID-20000318021221909.asp

-- (Dee360Degree@aol.com), March 17, 2000