Irish Life board faces rough ride at stormy a.g.m.

IRISH Life directors faced trenchant criticism from shareholders at a stormy annual general meeting in Dublin yesterday.

A large group of shareholders be dated the board for its handling of a mange of issues, including the on going dispute with its sales force and its investment performance.

Dissident shareholders - many of whom are employees currently in dispute with the company - disrupted proceedings almost immediately taking unibradge with chairman, Mr Conor McCarthy's refusal to read the minutes of the previous year's meeting. Mr McCarthy insisted a copy of the minutes had been distributed to shareholders before the meeting.

The scene was set. Immediately, the noise rose, with more than half of the 200 shareholders present clapping loudly and stamping their feet, in a bid to drown out the chairman.

Things quietened down after about 10 minutes as the chairman brought up the reelection of the directors to the company. A number of shareholders voted against the motion, to reelect Mr McCarthy, Mr Pat Kenny and Mr David Davies. After a prolonged argument, the chairman finally agreed to carry out a poll, to satisfy their demands for a breakdown of the result.

The chairman then went on to highlight the group's achievements over the past year, reporting growth in its life business - "a cause for celebration", he said.

His celebratory mood was lost on the crowd though, particularly those who jeered that they had been living on £30 a week strike pay since February. "Celebrations for yourselves - the fat cats taking big pay rises," one man shouted.

When they finally got the go ahead, shareholders' hands shot up to ask questions. A couple immediately distanced themselves from those orchestrating the protest, declaring that they had no association with the group, but adding that they were concerned at the company's handling of its industrial relations problems.

Mr David Anderson, questioned the company's decision to privately sell off some of its valuable property interests, such as the controversial Mespil Flats, instead of allowing the sale to go to public auction.

Others complained about poor investment returns on Irish Life policies and the group's weak investment performance against other Irish institutions as recorded in official surveys.

But the meeting soon returned to the thorny issue of the long running dispute, which has now gone to the Employers' Labour Conference for binding arbitration.

The meeting was adjourned until the evening to allow the poll to be conducted. When it was re convened, the chairman announced the election of the three directors by an overwhelming majority.

Mr McCarthy, no doubt, is hoping for a quieter affair next year.