FSU sees gaps in Johnson report
The Australian Financial Centre Forum’s report, which aims to see Australia develop into a financial hub, has been criticised by the Finance Sector Union (FSU) for not addressing the need for better regulation of the financial services industry nor concerns around the offshoring of Australian jobs.
While the FSU welcomed Johnson Report, hailing it as a positive step forward for the industry, it stated that there were still gaps in its list of recommendations.
The FSU stated that the report does not address the issue of the offshoring of jobs by Australian finance companies, driven by short-term thinking.
It also stated that the report does not call for better regulation.
“One of the lessons from the [global financial crisis] is that strong regulation not only protects the country’s economy and consumers from corporate excesses, but also retains jobs,” the FSU stated in a release.
“The report missed the opportunity to focus on some of the worst practices of our industry, such as the sales-bonus culture, and seek to eradicate the overreliance on such thinking from industry practice.”
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