Westpac Bank slammed over reports it will ‘brutally cut' more than 1500 jobs despite massive profits
More than 1500 Westpac employees will lose their jobs if reported redundancies are brought forward in coming months.
The cuts come as the banking giant plans to simplify its technology systems and restructure its workforce, the Australian Financial Review reported on Tuesday.
Westpac has more than 30,000 employees, with almost 5000 employed in the past year, a spokesperson told 7NEWS.com.au.
But CEO Anthony Miller has asked most managers to consider how they would cull 5 per cent of their teams, unauthorised sources told AFR.
A Westpac spokesperson was unable to confirm those numbers or directions when contacted by 7NEWS.com.au but said: 'We adjust the composition of our workforce according to our investment priorities.'
The impending cuts come on top of almost 1000 job cuts over the past year, the Finance Sector Union said on Wednesday.
'Westpac employees have faced ongoing uncertainty and significant job losses over the past few years with more job cuts now under a new 'business-led simplification program' (called) UNITE,' the union's national president Wendy Streets said.
'As the new CEO, Anthony Miller had an opportunity to invest in his existing, dedicated workforce. He appears to be choosing not to do so.
'This is deeply disappointing, particularly as Westpac posted a net profit of $7 billion just last year.
'Our members have worked hard to turn massive profits for Westpac over the years, they deserve to be rewarded and not have their jobs brutally cut for the sake of cost-savings and even bigger profits.'
Collateral damage for 'costs and investment'
The bank asserted that a focus on investment in a changing industry landscape will continue to push certain jobs onto the company chopping block.
'While we continue to invest in extra bankers and customer-facing roles, other programs and initiatives may need fewer resources,' the Westpac spokesperson told 7NEWS.com.au.
'This means from time to time we make changes that may impact some roles and responsibilities as we actively manage costs and investment.
'As the skills and capabilities required in banking continue to evolve, so will our workforce.
'We try to keep as many employees as we can, through retraining and redeployment. For those who leave, we help them with tailored support and assistance with career transition.'
AFR reports Miller made changes to the executive team soon after taking the top job in December, outlining smaller margins due to the bank entering the business-lending market — a move which reportedly yielded early results that disappointed investors.
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