Westpac plans branch closures

Westpac has told staff it plans to close seven branches, with employees redeployed to other branches.

The branches slated to close include two in Auckland, two in Christchurch, one in Tauranga and one in Invercargill.

The Co-operative Bank also planned to close some of its branches, including its branch in Queen St in Auckland central business district, Stuff understands.

The planned closures follow a proposal from BNZ to close branches in Parnell, Penrose, Glen Eden, and Queen St in Auckland, Karori in Wellington, and the Christchurch branches of Cashel, Fitzgerald and Russley.

The Auckland Westpac branches proposed for closure are the Mt Eden branch, and the branch in Whangaporoa, with staff from the Whangaparoa branch to be redeployed to Silverdale.

In Christchurch, the St Martins and Halswell branches are to close. Westpac also planned to close its Invercargill South branch, and one of its ‘‘Help Stations’’ in Tauranga. Also to close was the Wellington Karori branch.

Westpac was not making offers of redundancy to employees, and instead was offering to redeploy them.

Westpac spokesman Will Hine said the bank was closing three sites and consulting with staff on changes to four others, and all employees working at these sites were being offered roles at nearby locations.

‘‘The Invercargill South branch will close due to the fact it does not meet our earthquake standards. There are two other Westpac branches located nearby.

‘‘The other proposed changes are due to an increasing number of Westpac customers choosing to do their banking on their computer or mobile device. This trend only increased during our recent Covid19 lockdown as more people chose to bank remotely.’’

The Co-operative Bank, which is owned by its members, has proposed to close three of its branches.

Staff from the Queen St branch will be offered positions in the bank’s Onehunga or Manukau branches. The bank also planned to shut its Porirua branch in the Wellington region, and its Papanui branch in Christchurch.

Kate Necklen, general manager for marketing and products at Cooperative Bank, said: ‘‘The proposed changes reflect the declining personal visits prior to

Covid-19, and it is likely that all staff will have the opportunity to relocate to other branches.’’

Yesterday the number of home loans and other kinds of loans on which borrowers had taken repayment ‘‘holidays’’, or reduced their repayments, as a result of losing incomes in the early weeks of the economic crisis caused by Covid-19 passed 110,000 for the first time.

Westpac was not making offers of redundancy to employees, and instead was offering to redeploy them.