The Irish Bank Officials' Association (IBOA) has welcomed an invitation to hold talks at the Labour Court over plans by Bank of Ireland to introduce a reduced pension for new staff.
The union's general secretary Larry Broderick said the IBOA appreciated the urgency and priority that the Labour Court is giving to the issue.
Mr Broderick said that at today's Labour Court hearing, the IBOA had highlighted what he claimed was a breach of existing industrial relations procedures by the bank "through their ham-fisted attempt to force through such a draconian measure".
"IBOA believes the Labour Court hearing gives all sides an opportunity to address the pensions issue in a meaningful and responsible manner, in line with existing agreements and IBOA hopes the bank will respond positively," Mr Broderick said in a statement.
He said that if the bank did not do so, the union would be "left with no alternative but to pursue a major campaign to ensure all staff pensions and our members livelihoods are protected into the future".
Bank of Ireland has proposed introducing a pension scheme for new employees, which would not guarantee them the same benefits as existing workers. Many firms are moving towards so-called 'defined contribution' pension models, instead of 'defined benefit' schemes, which provide a guaranteed income on retirement but which cost employers much more to fund.