Australian financial sector union on Monday launched a media campaign against offshoring of jobs to India stating that the move would risk customer details.
"When a bank sends jobs to India it is not just the jobs that go, but information, such as about driver's licences, passports, signatures, earnings, assets, debts, credit cards and account details -- and Australian privacy laws do not apply to other countries," a radio advertisement by the union says.
"Thousands of Australian finance sector jobs are under threat of being offshored to India where workers are paid as little as $100 per week," union National Secretary Paul Schroder said in a statement on Monday.
"That is why, the finance sector union says, it is calling on banks to protect personal data, and thousands of Australian jobs," he said.
The union has been fighting the growing trend for financial institutions to send their behind-the-scenes work to countries such as India where labour is cheaper. The union's Secretary Paul Schroder denied the ads were racist.
"We are not saying foreign workers are more likely to (commit fraud), but here we are at a complete loss (to know) what legal remedy people would have if their data was stolen," he said.
According to research by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, up to 80 per cent of jobs in the finance industry could be lost overseas, costing over 100,000 Australian jobs, Schroder said.
The radio ads will be supported by a website on which the union has posted details of jobs sent offshore by Australian banks.
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