FSU calls for bank salaries and sales targets to be separated
The Finance Sector Union (FSU) has called on the Government to rein in debt-pushing, suggesting one way this could be done is by separating bank workers’ salaries from sales targets.
The FSU said that while banks are more cautious of stepping out of line with the Reserve Bank of Australia, they are continuing to benefit from aggressive sales techniques that are contributing to increasing personal debt. This situation would only be exacerbated by increasing interest rates.
“Personal debt is like an iceberg. Most of it is below the surface,” said FSU national secretary Leon Carter. “Banks want us to look only at the top — the rates they charge. But families are drowning in more debt than ever thanks to banks’ unsustainable sales targets.”
These comments follow news of a New South Wales credit counselling agency reporting a dramatic increase in calls over the last year.
Carter said that if Prime Minister Kevin Rudd wants to show financial leadership to the G20, “reining in debt-pushing by banks would be a very good place to start”.
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