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READ MORE: Bankwest shuts down ALL branches as it discontinues cash services
Staff at a
Commonwealth Bank
Subsidiaries are feeling ‘pressured and overwhelmed’ due to experiencing another wave of significant layoffs within just twelve months.
Since 2022, WA-based Bankwest, operating under the CBA umbrella, has been gradually moving its business clients over to its parent company.
After three years, the initiative has been completed, resulting in 120 employees losing their jobs, while approximately 30 are anticipated to secure new roles within the organization.
This comes after the elimination of 400 positions last year when the bank shut down all its branches and shifted entirely to a digital platform.
The Finance Sector Union has stated that employees are ‘tired of facing an ongoing threat of job loss.’
‘Ever since Bankwest decided to pull out of business banking three years ago, both customers and employees at Bankwest have been dealing with uncertainty,’ stated National Assistant Secretary Jason Hall.
Our members consistently report feeling pressured and overwhelmed across various departments at Bankwest because of the bank’s continuous series of layoffs and overseas outsourcing.
A representative from Bankwest informed Daily Mail Australia that the role of the 130-member transition team was always intended to be temporally restricted.
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“The completion of the business banking transition program will affect around 120 positions held by colleagues based in Western Australia,” they stated.
‘[CBA] The group presently has over 100 vacant positions at Bankwest and CBA in Western Australia.’
‘We will collaborate closely with our affected colleagues to assist them in finding new career opportunities within the Group.’
The century-old financial institution shut down 45 of its branches in the previous year.
Fifteen remaining branches based in regional areas were rebranded under Commonwealth Bank.
Every one of the 400 employees at these sites was presented with new job opportunities, and over 300 decided to take them up.
The bank stated further that an additional 500 positions within the CBA Group, focusing on technology, operations, and customer service, will be relocated to WA ‘to aid Bankwest’s shift towards digital transformation’.
“Regrettably, the WA government was misled in this situation—the promise of 500 group positions was made in exchange for Bankwest transitioning entirely to digital operations,” stated Mr. Hall.
He stated that instead, the bank keeps reducing local employment.
‘It’s evident that this commitment was merely an empty pledge made by CBA to deflect criticism for neglecting an entire community.’
‘Members have repeatedly informed us that they feel pressured and overwhelmed across various departments at Bankwest because of the continuous series of layoffs and offshore outsourcing by the bank.’
The union stated they will be sending a letter to WA Treasurer Rita Saffioti requesting an immediate meeting and urging her to promptly address the issue.
The Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Minister Saffioti for their comments.
In 1995, the Western Australian government sold Bankwest to Britain’s Bank of Scotland, which later merged into the London-based Lloyds Banking Group.
In 2008, Lloyds offloaded Bankwest to Commonwealth Bank for $2.1 billion.
CBA extended the Bankwest brand to key eastern seaboard cities as a competitor brand, even though it was under ownership of Australia’s biggest banking institution. However, in 2018, they pulled back to operate solely within Western Australia.
By 2024, approximately 2,100 branches had closed down across various leading banks during a span of six years.
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