NAB Job Cuts 2026: Up to 2,500 Roles. Are You Next?

NAB wants a simpler bank. Employees deserve to know whether that means a smaller team carrying the same deadlines.

Before a vacancy disappears or two teams become one, ask what work stops. A new organisation chart should come with decisions about staffing, responsibilities and pay.

Corporate teams are in the firing line.

CEO Andrew Irvine says the changes will improve customer outcomes by “reducing duplication and speeding up decision making”. Corporate functions are a particular focus.

If you work in a central support team, ask where your position appears in the proposed structure. Is it retained, combined with another role or removed? Find out who makes that decision and what criteria they use.

NAB says customer-facing banking roles will face no material impact. Employees in those businesses can still ask whether changes to management or support teams will alter their daily work.

Fewer senior managers. Wider responsibilities.

Irvine says deeper changes to senior management will “broaden leadership responsibilities”. That puts the scope of the surviving roles squarely into the discussion.

More direct reports, approvals and escalations can turn an existing position into a much larger job. Ask what authority, training and support come with it, and when the role level and pay will be reviewed.

A promotion or a retained title deserves the same scrutiny. Read the responsibilities you are being asked to accept.

The deadline is close. Your selection details still matter.

The FSU says management could not answer basic questions at its initial 20 October meeting about which roles would be affected and when employees would be told. FSU National Assistant Secretary Nicole McPherson said staff had “suffered a year from hell after previous cuts”.

The union also reports that management did not confirm whether AI was behind the cuts at that meeting.

Ask for the proposed selection pool, assessment criteria, notification dates and process for raising concerns. Keep the answers and the consultation documents together. A broad announcement leaves too much room for assumptions about an individual job.

NAB says consultation with employees and the union is beginning. The FSU’s support updates provide a direct route to its briefings and workplace assistance.

Contractor cuts can leave your team with another gap.

NAB also plans to materially reduce consultants and external contractors. If you rely on an external specialist, ask whether their contract will continue.

If your team depends on those people, check who will maintain their systems, finish their projects and take over specialist tasks. A contract ending still requires a handover and a decision about the work that continues.

Some work could move overseas.

The FSU reports around 180 roles moving to NAB offices in India and Vietnam. Ask how those moves fit within the announced reduction and which local positions are affected. The published figures do not provide a combined total to add together.

For the employees involved, follow the work through the proposed handover. Who owns the process afterwards, and what happens to the current team? Our Qantas offshoring coverage examines similar questions about work continuing in another location.

Put the bigger job in writing.

Use these questions when a manager asks you to absorb more:

After the discussion, send a short email recording the agreed priorities and support. Managers need to explain what their teams can deliver within working hours.

On 24 April 2026, NAB and the FSU jointly announced an agreed framework to address the risks of additional working hours, with greater oversight and a joint working group. Ask how that framework will apply if this restructure expands your role.

Our no-backfill guide explains how an empty position can become a lasting increase in everyone else’s workload.

Redeployment needs an actual opening.

NAB lists redeployment, reskilling, career transition support and redundancy entitlements among its commitments. Ask which vacancies are available, how matching works and when you will receive the terms in writing.

Compare the proposed role with your skills and circumstances. Check whether an enterprise agreement covers your role and use the Fair Work Ombudsman’s redundancy guidance to understand the relevant rules. Take questions about an individual calculation to the union or a qualified adviser.

5 November is the next checkpoint.

The expected charge covers redundancy, redeployment and organisational redesign. It is nearly four times the approximately A$80 million incurred in each of the previous two financial years. NAB’s 5 November results will bring further detail on its FY2027 cost outlook.

Watch whether that update explains the pace and structure of the changes. Keep checking the consultation documents that address your own team.

Following the staffing decisions across banking.

The Grind Hotline tracks management cuts, unfilled vacancies and workload changes across banks. Our latest Bank of America investigation examines fewer managers and next year’s output expectations. Here, NAB’s announcement and the union’s response anchor the questions employees need answered.

Three free products to help you prepare.

1. Weekly Layoff Intelligence Report: Get employer announcements, restructuring developments and source links by email. Use it to follow changes between company updates.
2. Job Threat Check: Take the free two-minute assessment of changes around your employer, team and role. Use the result to identify questions and prepare your next steps.
3. Layoff Tracker + Corporate Stress Index: Follow public reports of layoffs, hiring freezes and restructuring at the employers listed. Compare how workplace warning signs develop across companies.

Sources and evidence

Checked 20 October 2026. Company commitments and union reports are attributed separately. Workload scenarios and preparation questions are The Grind Hotline’s analysis.

1. NAB announcement: internal roles, management changes and employee support
2. Official ASX filing: reduction timetable, restructuring charges and cost outlook
3. FSU response: employee concerns, offshoring and the unanswered AI question
4. FSU: NAB employee briefings and workplace support
5. Joint NAB and FSU statement: additional working hours framework, 24 April 2026
6. Fair Work Ombudsman: redundancy pay and enterprise agreements
7. Download the dated claim and source evidence ledger
8. The Grind Hotline editorial standards: sourcing and corrections

Important Disclaimer

Independent workplace reporting and analysis. Individual outcomes and entitlements depend on the role, employment agreement and applicable law. The Grind Hotline is not affiliated with NAB.