Banks say stoppage by security staff will be 'limited'

The main banks have indicated that a planned one-day stoppage by staff operating cash-in-transit services this month should have a limited impact on ATM services.

Around 400 security staff plan a one-day stoppage on Friday week, April 15th, to protest at the threat to their safety from armed gangs.

According to Siptu, one in every four workers in the cash transit sector in the greater Dublin area has been attacked.

The stoppage is expected to mean that some automatic teller machines (ATMs) will not be replenished.

However, the banks said yesterday that the stoppage would only affect a small number of outlets. However, the situation could worsen if the protest escalated.

A spokesman for AIB told The Irish Times last night that the main area likely to be affected by the stoppage was "off-site" ATM machines in locations such as garage forecourts.

ATM machines on bank premises are expected to be replenished by staff, while those in stores will be refilled by their operators.

The AIB spokesman said it appeared the protest would have a "quite limited" impact.

The Bank of Ireland said it also believed that off-site ATM facilities would be the most likely to be affected.

The impact of the dispute on customers will depend on whether staff in all security companies participated in the protest, and whether the stoppage is nationwide or confined to areas.

Siptu's security branch secretary Kevin McMahon said that following a recent spate of robberies, staff "wanted to bring to public attention the ongoing threats that they are subject to from these criminal gangs".

He said staff in the cash-in-transit sector would not attend work on Friday week on health and safety grounds as their workplace was not a safe environment.

Shop stewards will meet on the day of the protest to decide whether further action should be taken.

He said members were angry that Minister for Justice Michael McDowell had yet to agree to meet Siptu officials on the recent raids.

Since the start of 2004 there had been around 40 attacks on security staff involved in the cash-in-transit sector, with increasing levels of violence being used.

One member of staff had been shot and another had had his family abducted.

In a statement last night the Minister for Justice Mr McDowell repeated his warning that he would introduce regulations if the security sector could not agree a voluntary code of practice within four months.

Security staff involved in the protest have decided against a march to the Department of Justice as part of the day of protest as they fear their identities could become known to armed gangs.