Commonwealth Bank is preparing job cuts to trim staff across various sectors.

Reports say up to 100 employees have already been affected by Commonwealth Bank’s efforts to grapple with $3.5 billion in personnel-related expenditures during the last half of the year.

“As part of our focus on business improvement, we regularly review the skills we need and how we are organised. That means from time to time some roles and work can change or may no longer be required,” a spokesperson for CBA told reporters this week.

“Where a role isn’t required in its current form we work closely with our people to redeploy them into appropriate comparable roles suitable to their needs. 

“These decisions are never easy nor are taken lightly. Our priority is to treat every individual with respect and care, taking time to talk with each employee impacted to understand individual circumstances and work with them on finding opportunities and building skills to support them for another role in or outside the bank.”

Just last month, CBA rival Westpac shed 300 staff members and 400 contractors as part of its cost-cutting agenda, which includes plans to reduce the bank's workforce by 20 per cent by 2024.

A recent report by Barrenjoey banking analyst Jon Mott laid out pitfalls that major banks might face due to loans issued during the COVID-19 mortgage surge. 

As interest rates rise and employment prospects wane, borrowers tied to these “zombie mortgages” could struggle to meet repayment obligations. The report estimates nearly $270 billion of Australian home loans could default or become severely distressed in the upcoming year, putting a strain on bank profits.