Strike looms as Bank of Ireland talks fail

Tonight's talks aimed at averting a strike by hundreds of Bank of Ireland workers have failed.

Members of the union Amicus will mount official pickets at the bank's offices on Dublin's Baggot Street and Dawson Street tomorrow morning. Branch banking will not be affected by the strike action.

Both sides met at the Labour Relations Commission in a bid to solve the row over pensions, but the union's regional officer Colm Quinlan said he was disappointed nothing new was brought to the negotiations.

"Our members will not allow the bank to ride roughshod over their long-term pensions security," he said.

Amicus is fighting to stop Bank of Ireland reducing pensions guarantees for new employees.

Mr Quinlan said: "We have negotiated successfully with EBS building society and are in discussions with others in the financial sector but the Bank of Ireland has torn up the negotiation process by introducing new arrangements in conflict with previous recommendations from the Labour Relations Commission."

"We believe the bank's actions are unacceptable and if they won't heed the words of An Taoiseach on the importance of pensions then we have no option but to defend our rights in industrial action."

The main union representing bank officials, the IBOA, has deferred a ballot on industrial action.

A further one-day stoppage is scheduled for November 22.