Feminism Feudalism anarchism Freedom of Information Functionalism Gender
Global Capitalism Globalisation Great Thinkers Habituation of the Nation Hellinistic Philosophy Historical Materialism
Human Freedom Human Rights Humanity Immorality Independent Thinking Industrial Revolution
Pedagogy of Revolution

Flow of Ideas: articles - Education the HSBC Way

A Capital Friendly Culture for Further EducationA Capital Friendly Culture for Further Education
Academy ChainsAcademy Chains
After the Hillcole GroupAfter the Hillcole Group
Against What We Are WorthAgainst What We Are Worth
Ambassadors of Capital in SchoolsAmbassadors of Capital in Schools
An Educational Mansion House for BusinessAn Educational Mansion House for Business
Apprenticeship and the Use-value Aspect of Labour PowerApprenticeship and the Use-value Aspect of Labour Power
Artistic OutlookArtistic Outlook
Ayers Rocked In His Own UniverseAyers Rocked In His Own Universe
B GenerationB Generation
Bourdieu on CapitalBourdieu on Capital
Bourdieu on Cultural CapitalBourdieu on Cultural Capital
Bourdieu on Social CapitalBourdieu on Social Capital
Brown PFI MonsterBrown PFI Monster
Business Sponsorship of SchoolsBusiness Sponsorship of Schools
Business Takeover of Further EducationBusiness Takeover of Further Education
Cambridge University OccupationCambridge University Occupation
Caught in the Storm of CapitalCaught in the Storm of Capital
Co-payment in Hospitals and SchoolsCo-payment in Hospitals and Schools
Cold Hands and Quarter MoonCold Hands and Quarter Moon
Communitarianism for SchoolsCommunitarianism for Schools
Compulsory Consumption and Uni-NannyCompulsory Consumption and Uni-Nanny
Conforming Schools Conforming KidsConforming Schools Conforming Kids
Copy/South DossierCopy/South Dossier
Creating MonstersCreating Monsters
Creeping Privatisation in Higher EducationCreeping Privatisation in Higher Education
Critical MassCritical Mass
Critical Pedagogy and CapitalismCritical Pedagogy and Capitalism
Critical Space in EducationCritical Space in Education
Delivering E-LearningDelivering E-Learning
Digital Rights ManagementDigital Rights Management
DistillationDistillation
Dorothy L. SayersDorothy L. Sayers
Douglas Kennedy: best-selling novelistDouglas Kennedy: best-selling novelist
E-learning for Free at the BBCE-learning for Free at the BBC
Edison Schools in the UKEdison Schools in the UK
Education and Inspections Bill (2006)Education and Inspections Bill (2006)
Education As Culture MachineEducation As Culture Machine
Education FireworksEducation Fireworks
Education for DebtEducation for Debt
Education IncorporatedEducation Incorporated
Education Markets and Missing ProductsEducation Markets and Missing Products
Education RepetitionEducation Repetition
Education the HSBC WayEducation the HSBC Way
Education White PaperEducation White Paper
Education, Globalisation and the Learning SocietyEducation, Globalisation and the Learning Society
Employers and School LeaversEmployers and School Leavers
Evaluating Different Teaching MethodsEvaluating Different Teaching Methods
Everything Louder Than Everything ElseEverything Louder Than Everything Else
Finance and FearFinance and Fear
Five Endings of DesiresFive Endings of Desires
Foibles, Frolics and PhantasmsFoibles, Frolics and Phantasms
FreedomFreedom
FreewillFreewill
French New Wave CinemaFrench New Wave Cinema
Full Report Ruth Rikowski[a]s Book Launch for Globalisation, Information and LibrariesFull Report Ruth Rikowski's Book Launch for Globalisation, Information and Libraries
Gender and Spokesperson in Group Work IssuesGender and Spokesperson in Group Work Issues
Global TradingGlobal Trading
Globalisation and Education RevisitedGlobalisation and Education Revisited
Habituation of the NationHabituation of the Nation
Higher Education and Confused Employer SyndromeHigher Education and Confused Employer Syndrome
Hitchcock: classic auteurHitchcock: classic auteur
Human capital, the knowledge economy and businessHuman capital, the knowledge economy and business
In Retro GlideIn Retro Glide
In the Dentist[a]s ChairIn the Dentist's Chair
Kids in the Land of No DreamsKids in the Land of No Dreams
KM CritiqueKM Critique
Lazy Brit KidsLazy Brit Kids
Learning in the Earthworks of CapitalLearning in the Earthworks of Capital
Learning InvestmentsLearning Investments
Learning to the MaxLearning to the Max
Librarianship and Human RightsLibrarianship and Human Rights
Lifelong Learning and the Political Economy of ContainmentLifelong Learning and the Political Economy of Containment
LSBU StrategyLSBU Strategy
Marketisation of the Schools System in EnglandMarketisation of the Schools System in England
Marx and Education RevisitedMarx and Education Revisited
Marx and the Future of the HumanMarx and the Future of the Human
Marxism and Education RevisitedMarxism and Education Revisited
Marxist Educational Theory UnpluggedMarxist Educational Theory Unplugged
Maturity and FreedomMaturity and Freedom
McDonaldization and EducationMcDonaldization and Education
Michael JacksonMichael Jackson
Michele RobertsMichele Roberts
Miss Allison and Novel WritingMiss Allison and Novel Writing
Moneythought in Higher EducationMoneythought in Higher Education
Mrs Thatcher and Holes in the Kitchen FloorMrs Thatcher and Holes in the Kitchen Floor
Multiculturalism and Faith SchoolsMulticulturalism and Faith Schools
My Tony BlairMy Tony Blair
New Ideas in Ruth Rikowski[a]s Book - Part 1New Ideas in Ruth Rikowski's Book - Part 1
New Ideas in Ruth Rikowski[a]s Book - Part 2New Ideas in Ruth Rikowski's Book - Part 2
New Labour Policy for SchoolsNew Labour Policy for Schools
Nietzsche[a]s SchoolNietzsche's School
Nihilism and Educational ValuesNihilism and Educational Values
No Learner Left UnhassledNo Learner Left Unhassled
Notes on the Confessions of John DenhamNotes on the Confessions of John Denham
On Education for Its Own SakeOn Education for Its Own Sake
On Education StudiesOn Education Studies
On the Capitalisation of Schools in EnglandOn the Capitalisation of Schools in England
On Transhumanism and EducationOn Transhumanism and Education
Open AccessOpen Access
Outsourcing Public ServicesOutsourcing Public Services
Peter Wilby on School PrivatisationPeter Wilby on School Privatisation
Planet of the CapitorgPlanet of the Capitorg
PlatoPlato
Playgound Risks and Handcuffed KidsPlaygound Risks and Handcuffed Kids
Poems by Gregory RikowskiPoems by Gregory Rikowski
Poems by Victor RikowskiPoems by Victor Rikowski
Post-Fordism and SchoolsPost-Fordism and Schools
Post-Fordism in Primary SchoolsPost-Fordism in Primary Schools
Postmodern Dereliction in the Face of Neoliberal Education PolicyPostmodern Dereliction in the Face of Neoliberal Education Policy
PowerPointlessness in Higher EducationPowerPointlessness in Higher Education
Private Schools as CharitiesPrivate Schools as Charities
Privatisation of Schools in EnglandPrivatisation of Schools in England
Privatisation of Student DebtPrivatisation of Student Debt
Races in the Imperial WarRaces in the Imperial War
Readings for Teaching CourseReadings for Teaching Course
Recruitment and Labour PowerRecruitment and Labour Power
Revealed Recruitment Criteria through the Use-value Aspect of Labour-powerRevealed Recruitment Criteria through the Use-value Aspect of Labour-power
Robotic EthicsRobotic Ethics
Ruth Rikowski Updates (Archives)Ruth Rikowski Updates (Archives)
Ruth Rikowski Updates (Archives)Ruth Rikowski Updates (Archives)
School Fees and the 1944 Education ActSchool Fees and the 1944 Education Act
Schools: Building for BusinessSchools: Building for Business
Science Fiction Films and HorrorScience Fiction Films and Horror
Second Time as FarceSecond Time as Farce
Snowballs and Risk in SchoolsSnowballs and Risk in Schools
Social Contract Theory and Political ObligationsSocial Contract Theory and Political Obligations
Socialism is not DeadSocialism is not Dead
Speed of Life - Part OneSpeed of Life - Part One
Speed of Life - Part TwoSpeed of Life - Part Two
Stroppy Individuals and Oppositional Cultures in SchoolsStroppy Individuals and Oppositional Cultures in Schools
Sustainability Policy at London South Bank UniversitySustainability Policy at London South Bank University
Ten Points on Marx, Class and EducationTen Points on Marx, Class and Education
The Business of Becoming a Business for AcademiesThe Business of Becoming a Business for Academies
The Capitalisation of Schools - Federations and AcademiesThe Capitalisation of Schools - Federations and Academies
The CBI and the Business Takeover of SchoolsThe CBI and the Business Takeover of Schools
The Commodification of EducationThe Commodification of Education
The Education White Paper and the Marketisation of SchoolsThe Education White Paper and the Marketisation of Schools
The Evolution of Federations of SchoolsThe Evolution of Federations of Schools
The Last Parents EveningThe Last Parents Evening
The New Japanisation of SchoolsThe New Japanisation of Schools
The Profit Virus - The Business Takeover of SchoolsThe Profit Virus - The Business Takeover of Schools
The Standards Language-game for Schools in EnglandThe Standards Language-game for Schools in England
The Which Blair ProjectThe Which Blair Project
Three Types of Apprenticeship - Three Forms of MasteryThree Types of Apprenticeship - Three Forms of Mastery
Tony and Caroline BennTony and Caroline Benn
Tony Benn: Letters to GrandchildrenTony Benn: Letters to Grandchildren
TransportTransport
Turney[a]s and PPUTurney's and PPU
Uninspiring TowersUninspiring Towers
Universe of Capital and My SpaceUniverse of Capital and My Space
Universities in a Neoliberal WorldUniversities in a Neoliberal World
Utopia and EducationUtopia and Education
What Can Nietzsche Teach YaWhat Can Nietzsche Teach Ya
When Bullies Roam the SchoolWhen Bullies Roam the School
When the Bowers BreakWhen the Bowers Break
Why Employers Can[a]t Ever Get What They WantWhy Employers Can't Ever Get What They Want
Will Hutton and His E-FossWill Hutton and His E-Foss
Wolf on Marx Without SparksWolf on Marx Without Sparks
Women in World WarsWomen in World Wars






Chandos Book Publishing

Education the HSBC Way



Glenn Rikowski, 23rd July 2007, London


Introduction

Traditionally, banks operating in the UK have not charged interest on student overdrafts for three years after they have graduated. However, last month HSBC decided to terminate this policy for university leavers, and:

“…those who bank with HSBC will have to pay nearly 10 per cent interest on their overdraft from August. For those with the maximum overdraft of £1,500, this will cost almost £12 a month. … The bank offers a free overdraft of £1,500 as standard to students in their third year, but from July 16 they will be transferred to a new standard graduate account. Overdraft charges of 9.9 per cent will kick in a month later. Those who graduated before this summer will not be affected” (Charles, 2007).

Whilst having an education section on its web site (see HSBC, und.), HSBC appears to be wreaking revenge on hapless students in the UK for successfully protesting against unfair bank charges.


Protest and Pay

Last year, students in the Edinburgh University Students’ Association, and National Union of Students and students and other higher education institutions ran a successful campaign on unfair bank charges (Aikman, 2007). Furthermore:

“The successful “cash back” campaign against unfair bank charges … demonstrates how individuals can stand up to the banks” (Ibid.).

There was debate in the national press on this issue last year too. Bank customers up and down the country were heartened by an Office of Fair Trading (OFT) ruling which capped credit card penalty charges in April 2006 (see Charles, 2007).

The banks have been seeking ways to bite back. As Charles (2007) noted: “Banks have been looking for ways to recoup money ...” since the OFT ruling last year. Thus, it looks very much like HSBC taking revenge on students for their timely campaign against unfair bank charges by pulling the plug on interest-free overdrafts for final year students just over a year later.


No Profit Is Too Big

HSBC has clamped down on interest-free student overdrafts at a time when it is making record profits. The bank’s pre-tax profits for 2004 were £9.6billion (BBC, 2005, p.1), though Prynn (2006) put HSBC’s 2004 profit surge at £10.8billion (p.1), noting that: “Only Shell has ever achieved higher profits for a UK headquartered company” (Ibid.). HSBC’s profits for 2005 hit £11.5billion (BBC, 2006, p.1), constituting a 5 per cent jump on 2004 (Frei, 2007). Yet these mega profits cut no ice when decisions were made to end interest-free overdrafts for graduating students.

This could be the beginning. The logical next move would be to end interest-free overdrafts to final year students whilst they are still studying. HSBC’s gigantic profits were mainly made overseas (BBC, 2006). Hence, it can teach UK students a financial lesson knowing that its profits will not take a battering.

Furthermore:

“Experts say that cutting the perk of interest-free overdrafts for graduates could catch on. Most high street banks have already launched graduate accounts with interest-free overdrafts for this year’s graduates, but next year’s leavers might not be so lucky” (Charles, 2007).

Other banks could follow suite, but to date I have not seen any reports that they have or intend to do that. The point of recruiting and retaining graduates is to secure potential middle-strata folk with incomes and aspirations to match. However, there are a few signs that, with the expansion of higher education numbers of the last 20 years in the UK, any advantage banks might hold in having customers with degrees is dissipating. HSBC may not be now so bothered with recruiting and retaining graduates according to Michelle Slade from Moneyfacts, a price comparison web site:

“I’m very surprised [regarding what HSBC have done]. The impression is that they aren’t interested in the graduate market any more. With the amount of free overdraft deals available graduates will almost certainly look elsewhere” (Charles, 2007).

Thus, if Slade is correct then HSBC might find that their competitors reap the positive fallout from this unilateral action and students will give the bank a sharp lesson in the basics of competition and consumer power.


Capital Lessons

From HSBC’s perspective, the move to end graduate overdrafts is an instance of engaging in cutting edge financial pedagogy:

“HSBC defended the move [to scrap interest-free overdrafts for graduates] by saying that it would prepare students for life after university. Karen Garner, a spokeswoman, said: “This gets the message across that there is a cost to borrowing and prepares graduates for the transition from student life to that of a young working professional”” (Charles, 2007).

This cynical defence of their policy by HSBC overlooks some of the other lessons students and others might learn from this affair. First, they might learn that even if a company makes history-making mega profits it still wants more. Second, they might learn that if protestors gain victories against corporate power then that power will seek to open the battle on other, perhaps softer, fronts. Third, and most importantly, students might learn that, even if they have budgeted carefully, fickle and impish representatives of finance capital will not hesitate to spoil the most meticulous and grounded calculations if they feel they need to. Indeed:

“Graduate accounts were originally designed to help inexperienced young professionals master the transition from budgeting on a shoestring to budgeting while starting to earn. While students need to learn how to budget carefully, it is wrong for banks to take advantage of the financial situation of many graduates who endured hardship whilst at university…” (Aikman, 2007, pp.1-2).

Thus, whilst HSBC views graduate overdrafts as constituting poor ‘financial learning’ their whole rationale was based on a supportive pedagogy. Graduates might learn to loath finance capital in general, and banks in particular (with HSBC taking lead bad guy role), on the basis of this kind of treatment. They might become radicalised against the dominance of finance capital in UK society, adding voices to any proposals to impose super-taxes on these financial behemoths; though it’s hard to see New Labour going that far. It’s a risk HSBC are willing to take.


The Long Term

HSBC is involved in the government’s specialist schools strategy. For example, in the London Borough of Redbridge it is involved in sponsoring a number of secondary schools. My middle son, Victor, went to one of those schools. When aged 14, he wrote:

“My school … is already under the influence of the bank ‘HSBC’, which, in my opinion is totally absurd. The bank gives my school some money and pays for certain things, but in return, my school has to show the pupils of the school some advertisements; advertising HSBC of course, and telling children of the so-called ‘fantastic deals’ that HSBC gives out” (Rikowski,2002, p.1).

The school also had its own HSBC-supported bank, with some pupils touting for customers in form periods. The idea is to catch ‘em young: if you join HSBC when you are 12 or 13, it is likely that you will still be with them if you end up as a graduate. Ironically, HSBC claims that it wants to nurture a ‘positive attitude’ amongst young people through its own educational programmes (HSBC, und.). Yet it appears to be flirting with producing cynicism and negativity amongst youth here in the UK. Young people are recruited in school only to learn the harsh lessons offered to them by representatives of finance capital as they progress through the education system.


Conclusion

The overriding pedagogical message from HSBC is that education in the UK, from schools to universities, should be open ground for promoting the interests of its long-term profits. Those who get in the way, such as the student campaigners against unfair bank charges, must be ‘taught a financial lesson’ – especially if they achieve any kind of victory. These are the kinds of lessons that can be learnt from companies like HSBC.


References

Aikman, G. (2007) Students warned as HSBC moves goalposts on its graduate accounts, The Scotsman, 14th July, online at: http://business.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1097082007

BBC (2005) HSBC bank reveals bumper profits, BBC News, 28th February, at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4303653.stm

BBC (2006) HSBC bank unveils record profits, BBC News, 6th March, at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4777714.stm

Charles, J. (2007) End of free overdraft as bank teaches graduates a harsh lesson, The Times, 21st June, p.6.

Frei, E. (2007) HSBC reports profits up in 2006, Finance Markets, 5th March, at: http://www.financemarkets.co.uk/2007/03/05/hsbc-reports-profits-up-in-2006/

HSBC (und.) Education, online at: http://www.hsbc.com/1/2/education

Prynn, J. (2006) HSBC banks record £11bn profit, London Evening Standard, 6th March, at ‘This Is Money’: http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=407420&in_page_id=2

Rikowski, V. (2002) Future of Global Capitalism, Information for Social Change, No.14 (winter): http://libr.org/isc/articles/14-Victor_Rikowski.html




Print Friendly - Print Friendly with links
Anti-Imperialist
 © Copyright, Flow of Ideas, Ruth Rikowski and Glenn Rikowski
current date time:
Capital and Class
Website Design and Coding by Digo PC
Site optimisation by Bytec Solutions
Free-thought Global Family Government
Higher Education Human Progress Idealism
Immorality Income Generation Indulgence
Injustice Intellectual Development Knowledge Management

Valid CSS!