Coronavirus: Bank workers seek pandemic rise

Union urges banks to pay customer-facing Victorian employees a $5 an hour wage rise to compensate for COVID-19 stress.

Finance Sector Union’s Nathan Rees: ‘Banks are an essential service for the economy and our members in branches can’t work from home’.

The Finance Sector Union has urged the banks to award ­thousands of customer-facing Victor­ian employees a $5-an-hour pay rise to compensate for their “stress and anxiety” during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nathan Rees, the union’s nation­al assistant secretary, said the number of COVID-19 outbreaks across Melbourne had been “distressing”, and the banks should recognise the commitment of their frontline staff.

“The COVID pandemic in Victoria has the whole state on heightened alert,” he said. “Banks are an essential service for the economy and our members in branches can’t work from home.”

Mr Rees said workers were dealing with distressed customers, policing mask and physical distancing requirements and keeping branch offices sanitised.

“They are responsible for keeping themselves, their families and their communities safe,” he said. “This additional work, along with the stress they are feeling, should be recognised.”

He said the $5 per hour “essential allowance” should be paid for the duration of this pandemic.

The National Australia Bank paid Group 1 and 2 employees a 3 per cent wage rise in June, backdated to January. A further 3 per cent wage rise will be paid next January.

“Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, our priority has been the health and wellbeing of our colleagues and continuing to support our customers with essential­ banking services,” an NAB spokesman said.

“We thank all our colleagues for their hard work during this difficult period.”