Live Blog: Updates on the Aviva job losses

We're wrapping up the live blog now - thanks for staying with us for all the developments this morning. For any Aviva employees facing up to redundancy, our thoughts are with you. It mightn't be easy to laugh today, but maybe this will make you smile.

Brian Gallagher of the Unite trade union, which represents the Aviva staff, has been on Pat Kenny for the last few minutes.

He says most of the jobs to go will be in the strategy, product and pricing and actuarial sections, so there are concerns that there will be no future career development in Aviva in Ireland.

Financial journalist Jill Kerby has given her own dispiriting take on the significance of the Aviva announcement:

Unite trade union say the cuts are "harder and sharper" than their worst fears, according to Ingrid Miley on RTE Radio 1.

Those 950 job losses at Aviva will take place over the next two and a half years, it's been confirmed. The redundancies are expected to be broken down as follows: 770 from Aviva and 180 Irish-based staff at Aviva Europe.

Igal Mayer, chief executive of Aviva Europe, said its costs in Ireland have to be reduced to protect the long-term future of the company.

“In Ireland, we must improve our competitiveness to ensure we continue to provide customers with attractive products, good value and excellent service,” he said.

“We’re fully committed to keeping customer-facing roles in Ireland and to minimising the impact on our employees.

Meanwhile, on Today with Pat Kenny on RTE Radio 1, Pat is chewing the fat with presidential no-hoper Mary Davis.

It's worse than was feared, apparently.

As many as 850 redundancies had been expected at Aviva this morning but RTE News are reporting that 950 jobs will go.

There will also be a bit of leeway as regarding the timeframe, though, with no redundancies to take place until next March.

Aviva's Susan Helmont is talking at this very moment at that "secrets of our success" marketing conference in Manchester. At precisely the same time as the senior management are briefing staff on those 850 job losses in Ireland.

More on that bad timing for Aviva story. We put the flesh on the bones of today's "Secrets of our Success" talk by the company here.

Newstalk's Maura Fay is reporting that the job losses will be on a phased basis, so there will be no repeat of the 30-day notice, slam-shut decision of Talk Talk in Waterford.

TV3 are reporting on their Twitter feed that a stage and screens have been erected at Aviva's HQ on Hatch Street. It's also suggested that those 300 outsourced jobs could well be kept in Ireland.

Interestingly, in the context of all the negative publicity surrounding the Aviva brand this morning, Aviva's Head of Brand Susan Helmont is scheduled to give a talk to a Direct Marketers' Association conference in the UK today.

The conference is titled "True stories, the secrets of our success".

Now that's what you call bad timing.

Aviva employs about 2000 staff in Ireland so this morning's announcement effectively means it will be stripping half of its payroll here. The company also plans to add 100 jobs in its health insurance division over time, but that won't be much consolation for the people who will be made redundant today.

Just as a counterpoint to this morning's announcement, Aviva paid an estimated €40-45m for the naming rights to the new Aviva Stadium in 2009. That was a ten-year deal, too, so we'll be calling Lansdowne Road the Aviva Stadium until 2019 or so - which could stick in the craw of the thousand-odd people who are expected to be laid off today.

A couple of interesting lines from the radio news this morning - including:

- One texter to Newstalk's Breakfast Show, who claimed to be an employee of Aviva, suggested that staff had been given 16 pay rises between 2003 and 2009, resulting in a pay rise equating to about 50 per cent.

- Another insisted that he wasn't overpaid - he earns €35,000 as a financial adviser having been with the company for 12 years.

- Others argue that top-heavy management is the problem, with one fat cat apparently having a full-time driver employed to cart him around.

We'll be keeping you updated on all the latest developments on the Aviva job losses this morning with this rolling news blog.

The company's bosses have told staff in the three regions to attend meetings on the matter, starting from 10 o’clock this morning. The company is expected to announce more than 1,100 jobs losses.

It's said that around 800 jobs are almost certain to go and another 300 are also though to be on the chopping block as Aviva looks to outsource certain processes, including call centre responsibilities to its offices across the UK.