Ulster Bank staff to battle for 'old' redundancy deal
Ulster Bank Headquarters in Dublin city centre
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ULSTER Bank staff will battle for a generous redundancy package when 950 jobs are axed.
Their unions are pressing for the same severance deal that was offered at the bank during a recent voluntary redundancy programme.
They tabled a claim for these terms during a meeting with chief executive Jim Brown yesterday.
Unions said earlier this week they would seek a deal that was in line with industry norms.
But last night they confirmed they wanted the old package, worth six weeks' pay per year of service on top of statutory redundancy.
The Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA) demanded that the redundancies should be voluntary -- with terms in line with those offered during the previous scheme in 2009.
The bank announced last Thursday that it was shedding 950 staff this year -- 600 in the Republic and 350 in Northern Ireland.
It also emerged there would be some branch closures, with staff in the retail branch network to be the worst affected.
IBOA general secretary Larry Broderick noted that the company said it would try to avoid compulsory redundancies, but this did not provide members with much comfort.
"We outlined the profound sense of shock, anger and distress which the bank's proposals had caused to staff as well as the anxiety among customers who had contacted the union in the wake of the announcíement," he added.
- Anne-Marie Walsh Industry Correspondent
Irish Independent
