’Seismic shift’ prompts Westpac closures

WESTPAC is shutting or amalgamating 48 branches in the largest ever downsizing by a major Australian bank.

Finance Sector Union (FSU) national secretary Julia Angrisano attacked the closures, accusing the bank of deserting its customers and staff to shore up profit.

The union said the closures would affect 165 staff at Westpac, St George, BankSA and Bank of Melbourne branches across the country.

“The shutdown of so many branches will impact on a large number of staff, customers and businesses around Australia,” Ms Angrisano said. “Westpac is deserting its customers and its staff by closing branches to shore up its profits.”

She said the bank had notified the union and its branch staff of the closures. Westpac has confirmed 39 metropolitan and one regional branch will close and it is working with staff to co-locate Westpac branches with its other brands in eight regional locations.

It said the branch closures followed a “seismic shift” toward digital and cashless banking, along with declining foot traffic at bank branches, particularly in urban areas.

The bank said it had expanded its 24/7 phone banking and virtual banking centres to meet changing customer preferences.

The union however disputed the shift to internet banking was the real reason for the closures noting “if these branches were making large profits they would not be closing”.

A Westpac spokesperson said that as part of the changes it had moved 300 new jobs to Victoria.