500 workers at the bank of Ireland, who are members of Amicus, have voted to go on strike over the bank’s proposal to weaken pension provisions for future workers. 8000 further workers who belong to the Irish Bank Officers Association (IBOA) will also vote whether to go on strike next week.
Meanwhile, the Services, Industrial, Professional and Technical Union (SIPTU) which represents over 200,000 Irish workers has withdrawn an €8 million account with the bank. It closed the account in protest at the bank’s plan to introduce a cheaper pension contribution scheme.
General Secretary Joe O’Flynn said “Banks have acquired an enormously powerful position in our society, which they have already abused in relation customers. The Bank of Ireland now proposes to drive a coach and four through the industrial relations procedures … in order to save even more money at the expense of its own employees and future pensioners. It is… ironic given huge profits it makes from handling the funds of numerous other pension schemes.”
IBOA and SIPTU are also considering asking hundreds of thousands of these members to close accounts with the bank.
(thanks to JRodrigues for the photo)
...the gossip 
Ireland online, 9 Nov 06: ‘The Labour Court is due to begin hearings today into the dispute over the introduction of a new pension scheme at Bank of Ireland.’