Anton Sekum, president of the PNG Bankers and Financial Institution Workers Union, accused the bank of “exploiting” the local work force and failing to give “due considerations” to the hardships the faced.
He said that in 2006, the bank saw a growth of 23 percent and 21 percent the following year.
Last year, according to financial reports, the bank earned 33 percent, he said in a written submission to the tribunal
The tribunal was hearing a dispute between the bank and its employees who were seeking better wages and benefits, including housing allowances.
The submission was presented on Sekum’s behalf by the union’s secretary-general, Vera Raga.
Sekum, who is risk manager with Bank of South Pacific Ltd, said ANZ earned a substantial amount of its profits from the foreign exchange market in Papua New Guinea in which it was the market leader.
He said the bank had experienced strong growth in the Pacific region over the last few years.
“All major banks operate within the same market and realize significant profits.
“Unfortunately, most employers generally suppress expenses aligned with staff benefits to realize favorable cost to income ratios,” Sekum said.
“These statistics are proudly announced by employers without realizing the real hardship employees face as a result of increases in the cost of goods and services,” he added.
Sekum said that was there was now a significant gap between the housing allowances offered by ANZ and BSP which recently increased its starting point by 67 percent.
“The economy of Papua New Guinea continues to record growth and this trend will not change in a long while in spite of the global downturn,” he said.
Sekum added that losses had been provisioned for and in any case, could not be used as a reason to deny the employees.
