Bank Tellers Cancelled

Banks are easing out bank tellers. It seems to be pointing in that direction because they are not happy to see me these days. Bank tellers from different banks have the same question every time I pay them a visit to check if dollars and cents I keep for safe keeping are still in the safe.  

I have to. They don’t make movies about bank heists anymore because bank robberies happen with ten fingers, digital robbers with laptops holed up in hotels for months, experimenting with passwords and sending ‘You have won $30,000.’ messages.

Do you do online banking?

After that question, bank tellers continue to advise me how the banking needs that brought me to their counters could be done online. Yes, online banking is something we have accepted rather reluctantly, but we use it. However, there are certain things that sends us to the branch, such as a third party wanting the bank’s stamp on a document, or transaction records with the stamp on every page.

Pushing customers to online banking comes from top management because bank tellers cannot actively promote the loss of their jobs. I wonder how they feel about it. The writing seems to be on the wall or computer screen then, that there will be no bank tellers tomorrow.

By: Nonqaba waka Msimang.