Westpac Group has strengthened its commitment to South Australia through creating 1,538 new jobs in the state over the past 16 months.
The additional roles mean that Westpac has become one of the largest employers in the state with a combined workforce of more than 5,000 employees.
Westpac Group CEO, Mr Peter King said the importance of the company's South Australian workforce in its national operations continued to grow, particularly over the past year.
"Westpac has had a presence in South Australia for 144 years and through our continued investment we have grown our local workforce to more than 5,000 employees working across some of our most critical operations, including lending, customer care and hardship assistance functions," said Mr King.
"Our South Australian workforce was at the heart of helping with our customer response to the pandemic and supported with us processing 229,000 COVID-19 support packages for households and small businesses across Australia."
The growth in roles in South Australia over the past 16 months has occurred across a diverse range of functions, as part of Westpac Group's national operations across all brands. This includes home lending services; specialised customer support; financial crime and fraud; risk and compliance; superannuation and investment support services.
"We have recruited a diverse range of employees will transferrable skills from other sectors, including industries that have been most hard hit by the pandemic like travel, tourism and hospitality," said Mr King.
"The range of work and specialist skills associated with these roles provides South Australians with unique employment opportunities to join a large-scale business in the local market and build a lifelong career in the banking sector.
"Westpac is proud to be growing a strong skilled workforce in South Australia. We are optimistic about the state's future economic growth and we're pleased to be contributing through jobs and opportunities for South Australians."
The boost to local employment builds on Westpac's announcement in July last year that it would bring jobs back to Australia from overseas to improve operational resilience and customer support during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Westpac Group also continues to invest in the South Australian community through partnerships such as the Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service; community grants to small and local not-for-profits that are making a difference in local communities, and $400,000 for South Australians undertaking inspiring work as part of the Westpac Scholars program in 2021.
