Employment concerns over proposed Aussie bank merger
Updated
Australia's Finance Sector Union says a proposed merger between the Westpac and St George banks would put bank employees across Australia at risk of being made redundant.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says it will block the deal, because there are enough other players in retail banking.
The $US15.3 billion deal still needs federal government and St George shareholder approval.
The Union's national secretary, Leon Carter, says if the merger is approved, other large banks will feel compelled to buy out their smaller rivals and shed jobs.
"What it will lead to is the concentration of the banking sector which will reduce competition, which will reduce employment within the sector, and the bottom line that that's going to be, it's going to be bad for the customers and it's going to be bad for bank workers."
