Macquarie Group has cut jobs in its operations division over the last three months, causing unease among the company’s back-office employees.
At least seven roles were made redundant since August in technology, and some who worked on Macquarie’s cloud infrastructure.
Macquarie staff were made redundant on the spot after unexpected meetings with management and HR. Bloomberg
Earlier this month, the group cut sales and support staff roles within its personal banking arm.
Two former employees who were made redundant, and requested anonymity, said they were called into meetings with their manager and a representative from human resources.
They were asked to bring their laptops into the meetings and were then read a script detailing the terms of their redundancy, and made aware of any services to aid them in the next steps of their careers, the former staff said.
Their positions were terminated on the spot, access to company equipment and software was cut off, and they were asked to leave immediately after the meetings.
Those who were working remotely were notified of their redundancy via video conference calls.
The short notice has left remaining staff uncertain over their futures at the company, the people said, as they recognised they could be deemed surplus to requirements at Macquarie at any moment. Staff in tech-related roles have felt especially vulnerable since the bank signalled it would increase spend on technology, risk and compliance in its result for the first half of the 2024 financial year.
Macquarie offered three months in severance pay, plus one month’s pay, which would have been their notice period.
They were allowed to seek employment outside the company, and given the chance to discuss, and apply, for internal roles at Macquarie, the people said.
Laid-off staff were offered access to talent management firm Audrey Page & Associates, which assisted former employees with their resumes and careers counselling.
A spokeswoman for Macquarie declined to comment.
The Australian Financial Review revealed in November that Macquarie had let go of employees in sales, business development and staff who worked in contact centres focused on the bank’s investment platform, Macquarie Wrap.
Those cuts, in Macquarie’s BFS division, came after the Financial Review’s Street Talk column reported Macquarie had let go of advisers in BFS.
BFS, Macquarie’s personal banking and wealth management arm, sits alongside asset management in the group’s annuity-style businesses.
Profits in annuity-styled businesses for the first half of 2024 slumped 43 per cent to about $1.3 billion, compared to a year earlier, Macquarie said earlier this month. BFS’ profit was up 10 per cent.
In personal banking, its home loan portfolio increased 6 per cent from March 2023 to $114.2 billion, while its business banking loan book spiked 12 per cent to $14.6 billion for the same period. Total operating expenses, however, jumped 15 per cent to $971 million.
BFS employed 4,016 people at the end of the first half of 2024, up from 3,512 people a year earlier.
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