National Australia Bank to cut IT jobs this week

09.05.2005
Von Computerworld Australia

National Australia Bank Ltd. (NAB) IT staff are expected to be hit by job cuts to be announced this Wednesday when the bank makes its half-yearly profit announcement.

NAB is expected to slash up to 3,000 jobs and announce plans to outsource some IT functions including check processing.

Financial analysts predict the bank will announce profits in the range of A$2.5 billion (US$1.9 billion), a disappointing result compared to other major Australian banks which have reported strong growth.

NAB is still recovering from a tough year in 2004 which included a massive software write-down and an options trading scandal.

The bank is now undergoing a major restructure with ABN Amro analyst Jonathan Reoch estimating NAB will cut 10 percent of its workforce, which currently sits at about 24,500.

As part of the restructure NAB recently cut 1,700 jobs from its U.K. operations to trim down back office processes.

It is also planning to outsource some IT functions with the Finance Sector Union (FSU) warning that the bank is looking to India to offshore some of its IT operations.

FSU communications manager Rod Masson said ongoing discussions have been held with senior management about offshoring.

"We have been in discussions with the bank, trying to convince [it] not to go down that path," Masson said adding that the job cuts are due to a mess created by senior management.

"Staff don"t deserve to be punished by it."