Bank officials are preparing a multimillion-pound claim to compensate them for their co-operation in putting 200 million euro notes and one billion euro coins in circulation next January.
The Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA) is to seek talks next month on a package for its members. General secretary designate Mr Larry Broderick criticised the banks for not initiating talks already.
Banks will certainly have to pay substantial compensation if they want to use Christmas week to prepare for the changeover. There are only two normal working days for bank staff in the lead-up to January 1st, which is also a bank holiday.
The IBOA was largely successful last year in achieving its aim of "£2,000 for 2000" - a payment for work associated with the Year 2000 computer changeover. But the special payments were restricted to relatively small numbers involved with IT and head office branches of the banks.
On this occasion, all banking staff will have to undergo training and will have some level of involvement in the changeover.
Mr Broderick was reluctant to go into details on the IBOA claim, which will probably be negotiated separately with each bank. But he did say the IBOA would prefer to see ongoing payments for staff rather than once-off amounts.
However, it may be that, as with the millennium payments, different deals will be done with different banks. "We hope the banks will engage with us positively. We don't want to be involved in brinkmanship. This is far too important," he said.
Considerable staff preparation will be needed. According to Mr Broderick, besides providing consumers and business with money, it is estimated that "80 per cent of the public will get information on the conversion from their local bank staff".
The changeover period will last from January 1st to February 9th but most of the conversions are expected at the start of January. Besides the volumes of currency involved, staff will have to exchange the five Irish pound notes for seven new euro denominations. There will be eight euro coins to replace the seven Irish coins.
Mr Broderick said UNI, the international federation of financial services unions, agreed to adopt a common approach at a meeting in Geneva earlier this month. UNI also adopted the IBOA template for negotiations. The IBOA and its fellow affiliates will be approaching banks next month to discuss the logistics of the changeover, training, security arrangements and how the operation is to be phased in.
Mr Broderick said the aim was to have an agreement with all the associated banks in place by October.
In the meantime, he expected training on other programmes by banks to be put on hold. "It is estimated six man years of training is required on the euro in each of the associated banks. That doesn't leave much time and it is worrying that we are having to take the initiative on this.
"There could be panic out there without proper preparation and we feel now is the time to sound the alarm bell."
