Commercial banking organisation AIB Group has proposed a 3% pay increase for its approximately 10,000-strong workforce, as recommended by the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC).
The pay offer forms part of negotiations between the Ireland-based bank and the Financial Services Union (FSU). The discussions, which began in November 2018, are being brokered by the WRC.
The proposed 3% pay offer will comprise two elements: a performance-related increase and a fixed pay rise, to supplement the escalating costs of living.
Staff in the UK and Northern Ireland are expected to receive a 1.5% flat-rate pay increase, while employees working in the Republic of Ireland will be awarded a 1% flat-rate pay rise, under these proposals.
The pay deal is being offered in conjunction with a pay restructuring project that AIB plans on delivering this year. This involves staff grades being streamlined to help simplify the organisation's career structure, as well as to improve transparency and consistency. The revised system will feature seven pay tiers, from entry-level positions to chief executive.
The suggested pay increase will have a particular impact on approximately 8,000 employees, who are employed across the three lowest pay levels. Employees who are currently earning a salary less than the new minimum proposed ranges will have their rate of pay raised to the new minimum, backdated to 1 January 2019.
Salaries across these three pay levels span from €25,410 (£22,635.48) to €73,134 (£65,148.50).
The FSU plans to ballot its members who work at AIB later this month, and the WRC has recommended that negotiations be completed by the end of March 2019.
A spokesperson at AIB said: “AIB Group and the Financial Services Union have concluded discussions on pay and a new career structure with the assistance of the Workplace Relations Commission. AIB welcomes the WRC recommendation and notes the FSU’s intention to ballot [its] members in due course.”
