The union representing staff at Ulster Bank has lodged papers with the High Court in Belfast to begin legal action against the company in a dispute over the wages of its employees.
The Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA) claims that the bank has withheld payments that are contractually due to staff. It added that other staff in the UK and the Republic of Ireland employed by Ulster Bank’s parent company, Royal Bank of Scotland, have received these payments without preconditions.
Although the bank is currently offering to pay one of the payments which the union claims to have been illegally withheld, it will only do so if staff sign up to contracts which would reduce their pension benefits on retirement and undermine existing terms and conditions negotiated with the union, the IBOA said.
The union’s general secretary, Larry Broderick, said it had taken action in an effort to secure its members’ entitlements under the existing contracts.
“We believe that our members are now being asked to make life-changing decisions about their future in order to secure payments which are already theirs by right. Our legal action aims to secure these entitlements without the necessity for our members to sign away important benefits for the future. The bank has given staff just over two weeks to make this important decision and have failed to provide them with the necessary data to enable them to make a fully informed choice,” he said.
Ulster Bank made no comment except to say it “continues to communicate with our employees directly” regarding the Pay & Pensions 2009 proposal.
It is understood that Ulster Bank will vigorously contest any legal actions against it.
The bank opted not to return to mediation with employee representatives over the pay dispute because it did not believe a resolution would be possible.