Source: First Union
More than 95% of FIRST Union members have voted to reject a pay offer from Westpac bank and after 4 months of bargaining, they will vote on taking industrial action this week.
Callum Francis, FIRST Union national finance organiser, said bank workers had been disappointed and offended over the last four months during negotiations with the bank and had now rejected an offer that included pay increases below the rate of inflation and well below their fair share of Westpac’s reported billion dollars in profit for the past financial year.
“Bank workers shouldn’t have to negotiate for four months for a pay rise that keeps up with the cost of living with one of the largest banks in the Australasian market, who are supposedly an industry leader and last year made over a billion dollars in profit,” said Mr Francis.
“Since 2021, Westpac workers have received pay increases well below the rate of inflation while bank profits remained steady and executives and managers’ salaries continued to rise.”
“How are we supposed to encourage small business employers like grocers or mechanics to proactively pass on liveable wage increases to their workers when one of the biggest financial organisations in the Southern Hemisphere fights tooth and nail every year to keep their own workers’ wage rises well below the cost of living?”
“Westpac are a market leader and one of the most lucrative and failsafe organisations in the country – their staff work immensely hard and are not benefiting at anywhere near the same rate as managers in the organisation from their efforts.”
Mr Francis noted Westpac’s recent financial indicators showed a company continuing to enjoy a high net interest income of $2.3 billion for 2023 (the main driver of bank revenue), which had continued to rise in the bank’s 2023 half-year statement, at 14 percent higher than the previous corresponding period. In its 2022 financial year, Westpac generated a record net profit of over $1.04 billion – up 12% from the previous year.
FIRST Union members have voted to reject Westpac’s pay offer and will plan and vote on industrial action in the coming days.
“It’s not common for bank workers in New Zealand to strike but they feel that their backs are against the wall after four frustrating months of negotiations and an insulting offer,” said Mr Francis.
“We will support our Westpac members to seek significant pay rises that reflect the bank’s excessive profitability against the backdrop of a rising cost of living across the country.”
