Investment management company AGF Management Ltd. has laid off almost 50 employees in its trust business –10% of its trust workforce — the company confirmed this week.

The layoffs in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver were an effort to reduce costs in a challenging economic environment, according to Lucy Becker, the company’s vp of communications.

“We felt it was prudent to realign our trust structure to be able to respond to the conditions and streamline our operations,” she said.

“Like many institutions, we’re responding appropriately to the changing economic times.”

But Becker added that increasing and decreasing staff levels in the company’s trust unit is not unusual, since the company often hires seasonal help at various times of year.

“It’s not unusual for us to make adjustments one way or the other on the trust side of the business,” she said.