Irish Life will outsource its in-house catering operation following the departure of the unit manager and head chef.

A spokesman for Irish Life said the company would be putting the business out to tender shortly.

The life assurer will follow the lead of its Permanent TSB side of the business, which has been using outside caterers for its requirements for a number of years.

Irish Life decided to continue its existing arrangement at the time of its merger with Irish Permanent.

"The manager of the catering unit retired recently and the head chef left," the spokesman said. "The company took the opportunity to review its requirements in this area and decided that it was no longer appropriate to assume direct control for this part of the business.

Irish Life employs about 20 staff in its catering operation. The spokesman stressed that their position would not be affected by any change of control. "There are several pieces of legislation in place to ensure that there is no change in their terms and conditions." the spokesman said.

"There will be no changes in the status of the contracts of any remaining staff and in the allocation of hours they work in the current structure," he said.

Irish Life said its decision had been influenced by the increasing weight of health and safety regulation of the food services industry.