Three home-grown Australian finance brands – including two major banks – have made a list of the “most attractive” places to work.
Randstad compiled data from more than 10,000 workers aged 18 to 65 for its annual Employer Brand Research, to identify the companies with the strongest brands and best public perception.
However, as a sector banking didn’t fare too well. Despite a 2% increase in positive public perception from last year, the industry placed 22 in the list of most attractive sectors to work in. Aviation topped this part of the survey and Qantas took the number one spot on the employer list.
CEO of Randstad Australia, Frank Ribuot said, “While the royal commission revealed some inconvenient truths about the sector, Australians see financial institutions as valuable to their daily lives.
“There has clearly been a positive conversation between family and friends of employees - limiting the reputational damage of the royal commission,” he added.
This interpretation comes as a surprise given that the banking sector is enmeshed in what Deloitte has termed “a crisis of trust” in its most recent trust index, with just 20% of Australian consumers believing that banks are ethical, and engaged in “what is good and right”.
There could be a practical explanation for the Ranstad results, with the positivity linked to employee benefits rather than an increase in positive sentiment felt towards the majors as a whole.
“Overall, Australian job seekers clearly voiced that work-life balance, salary and benefits as well job security were at the top of their mind when looking for a new role. These are areas the banking and finance sector has a lot to show for,” RIbout explained.
However, the CEO suggested that the results are indicative of a more deeply rooted shift.
“I believe the banks have responded well to the recommendations made in the final report, bringing back trust in these institutions, and most importantly bringing back trust to the large part of the population that would be interested to work in that sector,” Ribuot concluded.
