The Commonwealth Bank has opened dedicated vaccination hubs at its Hurstville and Sutherland branches to vaccinate staff and their families against COVID-19.
A vaccination centre for employees, their families and other members of their households opened at the Sutherland branch on Saturday, September 4, while a similar centre was opened in Hurstville at the end of last month.
A Commonwealth Bank spokeswoman said it was offering a number of measures, initially in LGAs of concern, including Bayside and Georges River, to support retail and business customers, as well as employees and their families who live or work in those areas.
She said the vaccination hubs at Hurstville and Sutherland were part of an accelerated corporate vaccination pilot program to help vaccinate employees and families against COVID-19.
Vaccination is voluntary, with priority access given to those in customer-facing roles.
The bank plans to extend the program nationally as more vaccine supplies become available, after a survey of more than 11,000 bank employees revealed almost 90 per cent of staff wanted to get vaccinated.
The opening of the hubs coincide with the introduction of rapid antigen testing for staff who work in areas of concern.
Commonwealth Bank group executive, human resources Sian Lewis, said: "We know that preventative measures like vaccinations, and pre-emptive measures like increased testing, are the best courses of action at this time to help our community combat the spread of COVID-19.
"As an essential service, with one of the largest workforces in the country, we are committed to implementing safety and support measures to help keep our people, customers, and in turn the broader community, as safe as possible.
"CBA's employee vaccination program will help speed up the vaccination rollout in NSW, and we are committed, as a bank, to do everything we can to support the rollout across the country."
The bank is also offering support to culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations in the LGAs, including easy-to-use Financial Support Guides to help businesses, community groups and individuals learn about available options and initiatives.
The Financial Support Guides have been translated into a number of languages, including Mandarin, Cantonese, Hindi, Punjabi, Vietnamese and Arabic.
The bank is also communicating one-to-one with customers via email and SMS about available COVID support measures on offer. Videos in widespread languages are also playing in branches.
"We've put in place a range of measures to support customers during the recent lockdowns, with a particular focus on the most heavily impacted local government areas and business sectors," the spokeswoman said.
This includes new deferral programs for home and business loan customers. There is also support available for business customers, including deferment of repayments on business loans, refunding merchant terminal fees, and waiving fees and notice periods on some accounts.
"We're also offering loans provided through the federal government-backed SME Loan Recovery Scheme," she said.
"This offers eligible businesses loans up to $5 million, with variable interest rates."
Details: For information about the bank's COVID-19 relief hub click here.
