Covid clears Westpac HQ

Hundreds of Westpac staff employed at the bank's Sydney head office could be asked to stay at home today after three employees were identified on Wednesday as being at risk of having contracted the COVID-19 coronavirus.

A bank spokesman confirmed last night that the three staff members had been in contact with family members who had recently returned from countries hard hit by the virus.

Westpac yesterday requested around 100 staff to leave its Kent Street building yesterday afternoon and not report for work until the results of screening tests on the three suspected cases were known this morning.

The staff are believed to have had contact with the three people thought to be exposed to the virus.

"Westpac is currently taking precautions in relation to three employees with suspected cases of COVID-19 at its Sydney head offices," the spokesman said.

"Anyone who has come into close contact with these employees, as well as those who work on the same floor, are now at home.

"We are supporting impacted employees and any potentially affected floors are undergoing extensive cleaning which is in line with health authority guidelines."

Westpac last week began reconfiguring its treasury and institutional banking operations to mitigate risks posed by the virus that is now spreading through Sydney.

The bank has relocated some people employed on trading desks to a back-up facility in Sydney and redeployed other staff to Melbourne.

It has also relocated some traders employed in London and New York to alternative locations.