FILE PHOTO - Pedestrians are reflected in a window as they walk in front of the headquarters of Deutsche Bank AG in Frankfurt September 5, 2011. REUTERS/Alex Domanski/File Photo

BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel’s chief of staff said the government was looking into the issue of job cuts, after a workers’ union said that a merger of Deutsche Bank and its rival Commerzbank could result in 30,000 lost jobs.

Chancellery Chief Helge Braun on Monday told Bild newspaper that it would be a “difficult” finding if thousands of jobs would be cut through a merger.

“The government is never passive when it comes to deals of such magnitude,” Bild quoted Braun as saying.

Both banks on Sunday confirmed talks about a merger, prompting labour union concerns about possible job losses and questions from analysts about the merits of a combination.