AIB has agreed a new pay deal following “intensive negotiations” with the Financial Services Union (FSU). Staff will receive a 3.5 per cent increase to their pay and a tax-free voucher of €1,000.
The agreement, which must still be voted through by the bank’s staff, recommends an increase of 3.5 per cent of which half is subject to performance.
The deal will benefit lower-paid employees more due to a condition establishing a minimum increase of €1,500, which could see the raise of some lower-paid workers amount to 5 per cent. The new minimum salary at the bank is now €30,525, a spokesman for the bank said.
The union is set to ballot workers on the agreement. It will open on Friday, February 13th and run for a two-week period.
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If accepted, the agreement will come into affect on April 1st. The bank said the pay deal was separate to any negotiations over hybrid working. It is understood that the two parties are currently taking part in negotiations with a mediator in relation to some aspects of hybrid arrangements.
AIB said it also includes a commitment to ongoing change and co-operation during the period covered by the agreement, which is understood to be one year.
David McCormack, AIB’s chief people officer, said the company was “pleased to propose a pay agreement which recognises [staff’s] important and valuable contribution”.
“This deal ensures our colleagues, particularly our lowest paid, are duly rewarded for the efforts they go to in building a more sustainable future for our 3.4 million customers and the communities we serve.”
AIB said it also offered “a wide range of benefits including variable remuneration, full private healthcare cover, a market leading pension scheme and enhanced leave supports”.
Gareth Murphy, FSU’s head of industrial relations and organising, said: “Following intensive negotiations over the last two weeks, we have reached a set of pay proposals to put forward to members in AIB to ballot. “These are recommended and supported by the FSU.
“The bank has also agreed to pay the increased VHI premium, circa €600, which is of significant value to members in the Republic of Ireland and our clear understanding throughout the negotiations was we expect a full variable pay payout of 5 per cent this year in addition to these proposals,” he said.
Murphy said the union’s demands in the negotiations were “based on feedback from our members that any pay proposals would have to recognise the work, dedication, and professionalism of our members and take account of the profits announced by the bank over the last twelve months”.
The previous pay agreement, covering 2025, saw a 4 per cent pay hike for workers with a minimum increase of €2,000. The union withdrew of a claim for the working week to be restored to 35 hours – from 37 hours in the wake of the financial crash. In exchange, staff received a voucher of €1,500 and an extra day of leave to be taken in calendar year 2025.
