Bank says bulk of redundancies will occur before end of year, citing challenging economy, competition and ‘rapid technological change’

National Australia Bank is cutting 2,500 jobs, representing 6% of its workforce, marking another significant round of cuts in a sector heavily exposed to disruption by artificial intelligence.

It is the latest in a series of sector-wide job cuts, highlighted by ANZ’s 3,500-person layoff announced last year, as the big banks trim headcount.

Angel Zhong, a professor of finance at RMIT, said the restructure was part of an industry-wide reset.

“The banks are investing heavily in technology and AI, and redesigning their base workforce for a much more digital banking model. This is not just cyclical cost cutting, it’s structural change.”

The Finance Sector Union national assistant secretary Nicole McPherson said the NAB cuts would have a significant impact “on a workforce already overwhelmed by unmanageable workloads”.

Do we wonder that people are angry? I don’t.