Commo Bank Staff Force Smiles

Commonwealth Bank managers routinely encourage staff to say they are happier than they really are in internal staff surveys, according to research carried out by the Finance Sector Union.

As outgoing CEO David Murray defended his treatment of workers on the basis of the staff satisfaction surveys, independent research painted a different picture, with half saying they would not recommend the bank as a good place to work.

The McNair Ingenuity research nails the difference in impression: 22 per cent of staff say senior management encourage them to answer positively; and another 53 per cent said they felt under pressure to be falsely positive.

FSU national assistant secretary Sharron Caddie says the research shows that people should take management spin on CBA culture with a grain of salt.

"What this shows is that staff are feeling the pinch from 13 years under David Murray, a culture where there has been constant cuts to staff and services in the name of short term profit.

Murray announced his final profit result this week; a whopping $3.99 billion; prompting workers to release their own evaluation of Murray's 13-year reign.

The research found:

• 20,000 jobs lost including 3,700 in the 'Which new Bank' cultural change program

• 602 branches closed down

• 125 branches downgraded to agencies or service centres

• 1 in 3 staff living in fear of losing their jobs and the majority saying they would not recommend the Commonwealth Bank as a good place to work

• 1 in 3 staff placed on Australian Workplace Agreements

• third-rate individual contracts through subsidiaries like CommSec being imposed on staff; and

• a refusal by the bank to renegotiate collective enterprise agreements for 20,000+ staff despite repeated requests from the majority of staff to do so.

"The CBA's refusal to renegotiate employees' collective enterprise agreements means legally enforceable pay rates would lag 8% behind rates being paid to EBA staff, Caddie says.

"Market analysts are now starting to say what staff have been telling the bank for years - while cost-cutting and restructuring can lead to short term profits, the long term agenda must be about investing in people and services.

"Mr Murray's departure provides an opportunity for a new direction where workers are treated with respect and their choices are respected - particularly when it comes to bargaining collectively."

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Last modified: Tuesday, 15-Nov-2005 20:37:37 EST