…the gossip

Bank staff made a public call for Better Banks in the New Zealand Herald this week days before negotiations with ANZ National and Westpac begin. Close to 1500 staff from these banks have signed up to the Appeal for Justice which is also posted on www.finsec.org.nz

Westpac Union Council Chair Maxine Mullen says that the advertisement has sent a loud and clear message to the banks that staff want fair pay, better staffing and to fix targets. “We’re also sending a message to bank customers that their concerns are our concerns. Quality service and ethical banking goes hand in hand with addressing pay, targets and staffing.”

Maxine said that non-members could influence the outcome of the negotiations by joining our union before negotiations start. “The more members we have, the stronger our position at negotiations. Already hundreds of new members have joined Finsec. We are stronger together.”

This week Union Councillors and delegates visited sites affected by ANZ National’s proposed offshoring to Bangalore to survey staff about the impact of the move on them.

ANZ National Union Councillor Andy van der Heyden talked to Wellington staff and said that many staff were frustrated about the lack of information coming out of the bank. “There’s more news coming through the grapevine than coming from the bank,” he said. “People are sick and tired of “waiting and seeing.”

Andy said that the visits were very positive as they got members and non-members talking with each other about the different situations they find themselves in. “Members have been letting non-members know how being part of our union can help, and what support being in the union can give us.”

Finsec members across ANZ National and Westpac are taking out an advertisement in the New Zealand Herald in the week prior to their negotiations to let the public know what needs to change in our banks. Members in both ANZ National and Westpac banks will be negotiating their collective agreements at the same time in the week starting July 7.

The newspaper advertisement will include the names of members who sign up to it – and more names will be published on the Finsec website. Members are encouraged to sign the advertisement before the publication deadline of 30 June.

Finsec President Kelvin Pycroft said that the appeal was an important part of the campaign and encouraged members to participate. “Our banks may not like this, but in order to win the decent pay increases we need, fairer targets and better staffing it is essential that we share our message with customers and the public. “

Finsec members are calling on ANZ National and Westpac to come up with fair pay deals for staff in upcoming collective employment agreement negotiations to help offset significant recent increases in costs. Staff from both banks are committed to Better Banks: Agenda for Change goals of a 5% across the board wage increase and standardised pay for similar jobs across the industry.

At Westpac, staff are saying the bank’s own inflation projections of 4.5% mean that wages will need to raise by more than this in order to maintain current income levels, particularly with rising food and petrol prices and mortgage interest rates. Westpac staff are still paid less than staff from other banks in many instances, despite major pay wins last year.

Sarah Walters, from Westpac Palmerston North, says she is reliant on flatmates to pay her mortgage, and has cut down on extras to manage on her current pay. “With fairer pay, I wouldn’t have too much stress about money or juggling to make ends meet.”

ANZ National has already offered staff who are not union members a 4% pay rise, but wants to “red-circle” or freeze pay for staff paid above scale. The bank notes that inflation is up nearly 1% on last year but have only increased their pay offer by a quarter of a percent.

Finsec members say the ANZ National offer will not keep pace with inflation or rising costs, and that the bank needs to prove they are willing to address pay, unachievable targets and staffing levels if they value their staff.

Jake Faulkner from National Bank in Wellington says “We’re all starting to feel the pinch on petrol and other costs. But while money is tight for all my workmates, the banks are doing better and better with their profits. A real pay increase is really needed to maintain the quality of life of bank staff.”

The campaign to achieve Better Banks: Agenda for Change goals at ANZ National and Westpac is stepping up a gear with a survey and conference calls to identify the most important issues for staff at both banks.

Westpac Union Council Chair Maxine Mullen said that the survey sent out this week provides an opportunity for all Finsec members at ANZ National and Westpac to give direction to the campaign.

“There is a lot to be achieved in the areas of pay, targets and staffing in these negotiations. The bargaining teams need to know what the most important issues are and the solutions members are seeking to fix them,” said Maxine.

All Finsec members at ANZ National and Westpac are encouraged to fill out the survey and give it back to your local delegate to post to Finsec. All surveys need to be filled in and posted back to Finsec by Monday 9 June.

Union Councillors have been ringing delegates to encourage attendance for next week’s conference calls.  If you are a delegate and have not confirmed which call you will be on please do so today.

Finsec is questioning ANZ National’s political motives in light of the imminent release of a report critical of the amount the Government is spending on public services.  The Press last week reported that the bank will be critical in the report of the amount the Government is spending on “back office” or non front line services.

“It is of great concern that the report apparently focuses on “back office” jobs in the public sector given ANZ National has just announced its intention to offshore a good chunk of their back office work to Bangalore,” said Finsec Campaigns Director Andrew Campbell. “ANZ bank chief economist Cameron Bagrie has previously said he wouldn’t mind seeing unemployment increase to help curb inflation. Have he and the bank now identified who they want unemployed - public servants?”

“Differentiating the value of front line and back office public service work is a red herring. It is this kind of argument that is often used as a precursor to privatisation of public service jobs.  Does ANZ National bank want public service jobs outsourced or offshored too?” said Campbell.

“A strong public service is of benefit to all of us. Front line staff require back office support just as they do in any private sector business,” said Campbell.

Hundreds of members of the public are showing their support for the Finsec campaign against the offshoring of local jobs. Hundreds of emails have been sent to ANZ National CEO Graham Hodges opposing the banks proposed race to the bottom on wages by sending jobs to Bangalore, India.

Finsec members can take heart from the show of support, which included the following comments:

I am a customer of your bank, and while I have always been impressed with the service provided by your staff, both as a struggling University student, and now as a young graduate, this behaviour does not impress me.  However, I believe that the needs of your staff, and the needs of our country and its economic future, are just as important as delivering service to your customers, and returns to your shareholders. Banks should be more than just financial institutions - social responsibility matters too.

I have when living overseas dealt with corporations etc that have outsourced to foreign countries jobs normally done by resident staff - it is not a good experience. Time consuming costly and a terrible waste of human talent for a cheap buck.

As an ANZ customer who is usually well pleased with the service he receives I ask you to reconsider the decision to send NZ jobs to India. Such a move makes me wonder why I should be particularly loyal to the ANZ.

Get real Graham and go and do some research about outsourcing – you’ll find that it’s not the great money saver that many employers expect – many employers have ended up bringing services back in house for a whole lot of reasons such as costs, inefficiencies and even fraud. You’ll lose Kiwi customers as they perceive these types of corporate decisions to be fundamentally disloyal, and designed to benefit the corporate sector only. Outsourcing is dull and unimaginative just like so many human resource managers. Outsourcing is so twentieth century.

Finsec has written to the Privacy Commissioner, Marie Shroff, to ask for an investigation into the privacy implications of the transfer of ANZ National banking operations to Bangalore, India.

Finsec’s questions include what steps the bank is taking to ensure information security, whether privacy breaches in India will be dealt with through the provisions of the New Zealand Privacy Act, and what obligations ANZ National will have to tell customers in relation to information privacy.

There is also evidence that public concern about the offshoring is growing. In a letter to the Dominion Post this week, Serge Kemelmager of Silverstream asked whether “we want our personal data stored in India? There is already a track record of employees of call centres and other holders of personal data there selling it to the underworld for illicit news. …..This country should have legislation prohibiting any holder of personal or other information from transferring it or having it processed outside New Zealand without the consent of the individual and/or company involved.”

Finsec is calling on the Reserve Bank to step in and prevent ANZ National from sending 500 jobs and key bank functions to India and for the Government to support such a move.

“The Reserve Bank can protect New Zealand jobs. We are calling on the Reserve Bank to use all mechanisms it currently has and develop more if needed to stop this unnecessary attack on New Zealand workers and bank customers,” said Finsec Campaigns Director Andrew Campbell.

“The Reserve Bank can and should protect New Zealand bank customers from the risk posed by the proposal. If there is any failure of the operation in Bangalore, the impact on the bank’s ability to operate, ensure customer’s access to funds and meet their other requirements could all be in question,” said Campbell.

In addition Finsec is calling for a change to Reserve Bank outsourcing policy by introducing a national interest provision, as the Government has done to the Overseas Investment Act. Campbell said the stability of our banking system is of huge strategic importance to New Zealand and needs to protected.

Staff affected by ANZ National’s offshoring have now had the opportunity to attend Finsec meetings to discuss the move and consider the union’s next steps.

Reports the meetings in Auckland and Wellington are that bank staff are feeling shocked, angry and betrayed about the move. Staff report that different teams have been told different things by management about the impact of the offshoring, which is adding to confusion.

Finsec members who attended the meetings say they are uncertain about the future, and feel paralysed about making financial or other decisions while not knowing what the future holds. This effect was even worse for some families where both members of the couple were employed by the bank.

Staff at these meetings supported a collective letter to ANZ National CEO Graham Hodges, and agreed with the guarantees Finsec is seeking from the bank.

Comments from those attending the meetings include:

“We need to keep the economy going in our own country.”

“Who knows if it will only be 500 staff, it could be more and more.”

“If this is not a cost cutting measure then what is the point of this?”

“We want to be part of the process, we want genuine union consultation and we want a guarantee of this – it’s the least they can do.”