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National Australia Bank is set to make a significant overhaul to its workforce and staff structure, with the changes announced in a big move. The NAB job losses will take as many as 2,500 jobs, with up to 1,500 of those expected to be lost before the end of 2026. Nearly at the top of the holiday season, the news has thrown staff off balance and garnered this bank’s union a strong reaction.
Key Highlights
- NAB is looking to slash its workforce by approximately 6% in the coming year.
- Up to 2,500 jobs are impacted, and up to 1,500 of them will go away by the end of 2026.
- It will be the corporate guys who are getting hammered, and the customer-facing bankers, basically, will be safe.
- The bank has predicted about A$300 million restructuring charge for 2027.
- The “Big Four” banks have all seen their stocks drop on the day, with NAB taking the biggest hit – almost 2.5%.
- The Finance Sector Union to be consulted.
Why Is NAB Reducing Its Workforce?
The idea is to create a more streamlined and effective structure, the bank says. The direction of NAB as a whole remains unchanged – CEO Andrew Irvine said its strategy remains “about productivity, it’s about risk outcomes, and it’s about execution”.
Earnings pressure is also a factor. The housing pie has been narrowed by weaker housing activity, more competition, and higher operating expenses. In August, NAB cautioned that housing credit growth would be slow in 2027, following federal property tax changes which hit the buying and investment appetite. That’s what this NAB corporate restructuring is in response to.
Which Roles Are Most at Risk?
The bulk of the cuts will be made in corporate and support staff rather than the frontline staff. NAB also plans to reduce its use of external consultants and contractors. The bank is the largest business lender and third largest home lender in Australia and aims to cut its costs while maintaining the customer-facing aspect of its business.
As reported in the bank’s Annual Report at the end of September 2025, the bank employed 41,880 staff members globally. That’s a substantial percentage of its workforce and is the planned decrease in jobs.
Union Pushes Back
The Finance Sector Union has decried the timing. National assistant secretary Nicole McPherson said it was a disgrace to cut such a high amount of the workforce so close to Christmas and said that it demonstrated that leaders were not in tune with their employees. She also doubted that the cuts would make the organisation any simpler.
The final number of NAB employee redundancies and when they will occur might be determined by the NAB’s discussions with the union.
The Financial Cost of the Overhaul
Restructuring comes at a cost. NAB is looking for a total pre-tax charge of approximately A300million for redundancy, redeployment and organisational redesign in 2027. That is well above the roughly A$ 80 million it booked in each of 2025 and 2026. Investors were nervous, with the broader ASX 200 index down 0.9% on the same day.
A Wider Trend in Australian Banking
NAB is not alone. In a move aimed at eliminating duplication and costs, Rival ANZ announced last year that it would be streamlining its workforce by around 3,500 positions by September 2026. The combined effect of these moves is a larger trend in bank job cuts in Australia, as lenders respond to a deceleration in credit and higher costs.
What Does This Mean for Employees?
The next few weeks will be spent consulting, possible redeployment and, for some, redundancy packages. The uncertainty seems to be greatest for those who work in corporate functions, and less for those who work in customer-facing functions. Nevertheless, it is a reminder that the days of job security in finance are over.
Whether all 1,500 jobs are going before Christmas or not will be determined by the consultation process. The NAB job losses are one of the biggest in recent years in the Australian banking industry; it is clear.
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