ANZ blunder sees staff learn ‘exit date’ ahead of official redundancy news

One of Australia’s largest banks has faced an embarrassing internal blunder after automated emails mistakenly informed some staff that they were losing their jobs.

ANZ Bank has faced a significant mishap after some employees learned they were being made redundant before receiving official notification, when they received automated emails instructing them to return their laptops.

As first reported by The Australian Financial Review, over 300 senior staff in ANZ’s retail division were set to be made redundant as part of a restructure that came into effect this week.

However, in an embarrassing internal mishap, some employees received automated emails about returning their company laptops before their managers had the chance to break the news, prematurely revealing their exit from the bank.

Speaking to HR Leader, ANZ confirmed the incident, but the spokesperson didn’t state that employees had been fired, instead framing it as staff being informed of “potential changes to their employment.”

“Unfortunately some senior employees in Australia received automated emails prior to being informed of potential changes to their employment,” the ANZ spokesperson said.

Bruce Rush, acting group executive for ANZ’s retail business, addressed the incident in a staff email on Wednesday, offering an apology for the premature communications and acknowledging the mistake.

“Unfortunately, these emails indicate an exit date for some of our colleagues before we’ve been able to share their outcome with them,” Rush wrote, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

“It was not our intention to share such sensitive news with you in this way, and I apologise unconditionally.

“I deeply regret the distress this situation may have caused.”

It has been reported that ANZ is unsure of the full scope of the email error and how many senior managers were affected.

However, The Sydney Morning Herald has indicated that the mistake involved “Group 2” and “Group 3” managers, who are relatively senior staff responsible for overseeing key “functions and teams” within the bank.

The email mishap comes at a time of significant change for ANZ, as the bank undergoes a major restructuring under its new CEO Nuno Matos.

An ANZ spokesperson said the bank deeply regretted the error and has formally apologised to the staff affected by the mishap.

“We are committed to treating all employees with dignity and respect, particularly when implementing changes to our organisational structure. We deeply regret the mistake made and have apologised unconditionally to our staff impacted,” the spokesperson noted.