The merger is inevitably going to mean the loss of some branches. | Gemma Andreu

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Unions say that the CaixaBank-Bankia merger integration process will lead to the closure of some sixty offices and branches in the Balearics within a year.

The main unions - the CCOO and the UGT - are currently analysing proposals for the merged group, and there is to be a meeting in Madrid next Tuesday (April 27) at which the plans for individual regions will be more clearly defined. From the unions' side, the aim is to keep job cuts in Mallorca and the other islands to a minimum. At present, 358 employees are due to be made redundant.

The integration and restructuring process is characterised by the duplication of CaixaBank and Bankia branches in many municipalities and urban centres. The combined bank is understood to be looking at taking advantage of employees' local knowledge in establishing more specialist offices. At the two headquarters - one in Son Fuster, the other on the Avenida Alejandro Rosselló in Palma - the integration process of management and administration has already begun.