Commonwealth Bank, Westpac called out over change that 'should be illegal'
A recruitment expert has slammed Commonwealth Bank, claiming it was 'not for Australians' after it listed 132 jobs for people living in India - as a politician exposes a little-known problem with the bank sending jobs offshore.
Specialist recruiter and career coach Tammie Ballis took aim at the big four bank for sending roles offshore.
'I've had enough of Australian companies pretending to support our country when they offshore jobs,' she said.
Ms Ballis pointed out that the bank had 244 job openings in Australia, while 132 positions were advertised for candidates in India.
'Buckle up, I'm about to rip into the Commonwealth Bank. See this, this is how many jobs they're advertising for at the moment. See anything suss?,' Ms Ballis said.
They're looking for 132 jobs in India. That's more than half of the jobs they're looking for in Australia.
Ms Ballis why the bank was hiring so many roles in India there, especially given it has no physical presence in the country.
She argued the jobs being advertised in India, which included platform engineers and software engineers, could easily be filled by qualified Australians.
'Are you telling me, Australia being the multicultural country that we are that they can't find someone that's living here that is bilingual with those skills?,' Ms Ballis said.
'Come on, not only that, if you have a look down here, this is their acknowledgement to country. Paying respect to our First Nations Australians. You're not for Australians.'
The Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) employs over 5,600 staff in India, out of a total workforce of 48,900. Most of these employees are based in Bangalore, where CBA India supports the bank's technology, business, and institutional banking operations.
There are growing concerns that more jobs may shift to India, as the bank explores a new lease agreement that could enable it to expand its Indian workforce to 10,000 in the future.
This follows similar criticism directed at Westpac, after it was revealed the bank had offshored 160 jobs to the Philippines.
During Question Time in Parliament, Senator Gerard Rennick of the Liberal National Party of Queensland pressed the Treasury on whether the government was aware of how much money is being sent offshore in wages.
A senior Treasury official said they didn't have the answer right away and would get back to him later.
'It's not hard to see why Treasury took my question about the Free Trade Agreements with the Philippines and India on notice,' Senator Rennick said.
'It turns out that the Australian Government charges no taxes on wages paid by Australian companies to foreign workers in other countries who are effectively working remotely, taking Australian jobs.
'Not only are we losing jobs, we are losing the tax that those jobs would have paid while Australian corporations still get a tax deduction despite sending money offshore.
'This then means the remaining Australian workers have to pay higher taxes to make up the shortfall. This is selling Australia out plain and simple.'
'This is selling Australia out plain and simple. Furthermore, for those of you who think that working at home is a good thing be careful what you wish for.
'You might be replaced by a foreign worker.'
He also pointed out that some workers are being brought in from other countries.
'For example, I've been told that there are people coming from the Philippines to build the transmission lines between Wagga and South Australia.
'Do we know how much money in remittances is getting sent offshore in terms of wages paid either for outsourcing or people coming onshore?
Aussies unleashed about the increasing globalisation of the workforce.
One said: 'Govt should make it illegal for big banks, those above a certain threshold/size, to offshore IT and call centre jobs, especially given their huge billion $ profits'.
A second added: 'At the end of the day these companies are greedy af and don't care about the average Australian. It's why I will always choose family over work every chance I get bc they wouldn't care if I dropped dead over my desk.'
A third said: 'I worked for Telstra and my job went to Philippines where wages were 1/4 of Australian.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Rupee firms; dip in US yields, RBI cash withdrawal plan lift forward premiums
MUMBAI, June 25 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee edged higher on Wednesday, as global markets steadied after a ceasefire between Iran and Israel held, offering comfort to stocks and currencies in Asia. Dollar-rupee forward premiums rose as the Indian central bank's announcement of a measure to withdraw excess banking system liquidity lifted near forwards, while a dip in U.S. bond yields aided far tenors. The 1-year dollar-rupee implied yield rose 5 basis points to 1.94% while the 1-month forward premiums ticked up to around 12 paisa. After market hours on Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of India said it will conduct a seven-day variable reverse repo rate auction worth 1 trillion rupees ($11.64 billion) on Friday. The 1-year U.S. Treasury yield was hovering around 4% in Asia trading after falling on Tuesday. The rupee was rose 0.2% to 85.82, as of 10:45 a.m. IST. The currency had rallied 0.9% on Tuesday as oil prices slumped after a ceasefire between Iran and Israel was announced. "Tuesday's rally offered a much-needed breather for the rupee, but the key question now is sustainability," said Amit Pabari, managing director at FX advisory firm CR Forex. "As long as crude oil remains subdued and global risk sentiment stays supportive, the rupee may find a cushion around the 85.80–86.00 zone," Pabari added. Asian currencies were trading mixed while the dollar index held below the 98 handle. Benchmark Indian equity indexes, the Nifty 50 (.NSEI), opens new tab and the BSE Sensex (.BSESN), opens new tab, rose about 0.7% each, tracking positive cues from gains in global peers.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
India's NSE offers $160 million to settle with regulator, move ahead with IPO, sources say
MUMBAI, June 25 (Reuters) - The National Stock Exchange of India has offered to pay the country's markets regulator 13.88 billion rupees ($160 million) to settle a legal dispute so it can proceed with a long-delayed initial public offering, three sources said. The sum is set to be largest settlement made with the markets regulator in India's history. India's biggest bourse and the world's most active derivatives exchange has been embroiled in litigation with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) since 2019 when it was fined 11 billion rupees for failing to provide equitable access to all its trading members. They are negotiating an out-of-court settlement, according to two of the sources. All three sources, who have direct knowledge of the discussions, were not authorised to speak to media and declined to be identified. The regulator is likely to grant the exchange a certificate stating it has no objection to an IPO within three months, said one source. "If all goes as per expected timelines, NSE's IPO could hit the markets before May next year," said another source. NSE declined to comment. SEBI did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment. The cash-rich Mumbai-headquarted NSE has been trying to list since 2016 to enable some of its biggest investors to exit. But has been prevented by the regulator's investigations and then the fine. NSE challenged the penalty in court which ordered certain parts of SEBI's order to be set aside, which the regulator later appealed at the nation's top court. Among NSE's largest investors are the Life Insurance Corporation of India ( opens new tab with a 10.72% stake and the State Bank of India ( opens new tab with 7.76%, while Morgan Stanley (MS.N), opens new tab owns 1.58% and the Canada Pension Investment Plan Board has 1.60%. Its main domestic rival, BSE Ltd, listed in 2017. SEBI is conducting an inspection of the exchange's systems and processes before the no-objection certificate is issued, said two of the sources. SEBI wrote to the NSE in February flagging concerns about the bourse's internal processes, including how management is appointed and remunerated, its failure to appoint a chairperson and technology shortfalls. The settlement, if accepted by the regulator, will need the approval of India's top court, two of the sources said. ($1 = 85.9520 Indian rupees)
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Brewdog halts flotation plans to focus on growth
Brewdog has rowed back on plans to become a public company as its new chief executive plots a return to growth underpinned by 'sensible financial discipline' . A flotation has long been mooted for the maker of craft beers such as Punk IPA and Elvis Juice with suggestions of a valuation of about £2 billion. James Taylor, who stepped up from chief financial officer in March this year, said an initial public offering was 'not on the agenda at the moment' as the company moved back into profit under its preferred metric for the first time since 2021. • 'Fresh look, fresh beer': can a rebrand unleash Brewdog again? Brewdog pointed to a growing share of the UK beer market along with a strong performance in Australia and the United States. Net revenue, which does not include excise duty, for last year came in at £280 million, which was flat on the previous 12 months. The company said its adjusted earnings before deductions were £7.5 million last year, compared with a loss of £2.5 million in the previous year. It booked a pre-tax loss of £59.2 million in 2023, which included an impairment charge of about £14 million. Brewdog declined to give a pre-tax figure for 2024 but Taylor confirmed that there would be a loss under that measure and there would be no dividend paid for the year. He also said that the plan was to get back into top-line growth this year and improve profitability. Brewdog was founded by James Watt and Martin Dickie in Aberdeenshire in 2007 and the pair established a reputation for unconventional marketing methods and raising tens of millions of pounds through crowdfunding. It still has its headquarters and main brewery in Ellon, Aberdeenshire, but has other brewing sites in Australia, Germany and the United States. It runs more than 120 bars and hotels around the world employing about 2,400 people. Last year Brewdog secured a deal with Marylebone Cricket Club to provide beer at Lord's cricket ground and more recently became the official partner for West Ham United at the London Stadium. Lauren Carrol, the chief operating officer, said Brewdog continued to look for other opportunities at festivals and stadiums where partners wanted to do more than 'just slap our logo on something'. Watt and Dickie retain stakes in the business and are still directors but they have stepped back from day-to-day operations. The culture of the business was criticised in 2021 after an open letter from staff outlined a toxic atmosphere and a culture of fear. Watt denied claims of inappropriate behaviour but vowed to learn lessons. Allan Leighton, best known for his roles at Asda, was brought in as Brewdog chairman and a wide-ranging review was held. James Watt stepped down in May last year ALAMY Watt, who married the TV personality Georgia Toffolo in March, stepped down as chief executive in May last year and was replaced by James Arrow. Arrow departed for personal reasons in March and Taylor took over. Taylor said the company was 'way beyond' the historic allegations of poor culture and pointed out that 200 staff had been trained as mental health first aiders last year. He added: 'We are absolutely determined to give our employees the best experience they can have.'
